"Gather
around, chickies. I've got a story to tell you before I fly into the great
unknown. Now, this story isn't a long one, but it's true, I swear. Listen
closely, chickies. I expect you to find the lesson in all of this.
"When
I was a young fledgling, there was a great power struggle within the flock. No
one could agree on whether or not to migrate, seeing as how our winters were
getting warmer every year. The two biggest birds fought and fought, and turned
their little ones against each other.
"During
one of our mid-autumn city meetings, a glorious, shining black bird circled
right around us. I saw the adults shift on the wires, trying to ready
themselves for conflict. He did not stop to fight, though. He circled and circled,
eventually jumping into a wind stream and drifting away. Fascinated, the
biggest birds directed us to follow him. He was to be our new leader.
"He
was beautiful, I tell you. Just absolutely gorgeous. His feathers were so
smooth that when the sun shined down on him, they looked like one flawless
sheet. However, this bird was a weird creature. He never talked to anyone in
the flock. In fact, none of the others were able to meet him eye to eye. They
were so afraid, everyone stopped questioning his authority. Us little ones were
taught to follow and not ask silly questions.
"Sometimes
we flew for days--never even nearing our normal path. He never seemed to tire.
When our leader did land, he might only allow us seconds to scavenge for food.
Other times, we'd stay in one spot for a week, only barely skimming across the
ground. I didn't know which situation was worse. Either way, the biggest birds
were impressed.
"Onward,
we flew for weeks, over rivers, trees, valleys, and wires. Each and every day,
it got a little colder. The flock was just starting to believe that the
migration would never end when we were stopped abruptly. The leader had been
following the wind's every move, causing us to go back and forth, again and
again. We were tired--exhausted, really. Some of the mommas had to leave their
little ones behind. Birds weren't meant to fly but in one direction at a time,
that much was clear.
"One
of the biggest birds flew to the front of the flock to confront our leader. He
hovered above the beautiful beast, trying to gather his nerve. While doing so,
he pooped out the last thing he'd been able to eat in the form of a liquefied
berry. The dropping smacked our master, and instantly he began spiraling to the
ground. When we all found a spot to land, the biggest of the biggest inched
towards the master to see what had happened.
"See
now, chickies. We'd been following this guy thinking he'd save us from the cold
and provide us a fertile land. Instead, we'd ended up on some concrete in a
place colder than even most of the adults could stand.
"Anyway,
much to the flock's surprise, the biggest picked up our leader in his beak and
through him in the air. Then he stomped on him. You know why, chickies? As it
turns out, our leader wasn't a bird. He was a torn plastic bag. And we'd
followed it for weeks into a cold, desolate place.
"So,
I hope you found the lesson on all of this. Blind faith in something or someone
beautiful won't get you nowhere. It'll just get you tired, cold, and
hungry."
