A WHITE CROW. (8+)
Do you happen to know that crows live ten to fifteen years in average? Only white crows have not been seen for a long time, may be for a hundred years or even longer, one thousand years. Once mother-crow, who was 12 years old by that time, gave a birth - the only one baby-bird hatched. The first few days it was no different from the fledglings that the mother-crow hatched previously. Though, a few days after his birth, fluff started to appear and, for some reason, it was white. The Mommy-crow thought that probably it was because of her old age she had trouble seeing properly. However, mothers from neighboring nests also began to notice something unusual in the little baby-bird. They started gossiping about the case. The baby-bird’s mother didn't like it at all. She knew how virulent the tongues of gossipers could be and she made a decision to hide her baby-bird from curious eyes. She suggested her husband that they take turns in feeding the nestling given that they had only one baby-bird.
A few days later everyone forgot about the strange baby-bird, but the problem lingered. The fledgling crow grew quite fast and soon had genuine feathers instead of fluff, but unfortunately the feathers were white. The parents were very worried about the future fate of their only baby-bird. They wanted to keep the baby-bird in the nest as long as possible, but the active fledgling crow did not understand the reasons that would prevent him from flying out of the nest.
And then there were his first flights, first bugs and spiders which he treated himself to with pleasure. However, those first joyful days were gloomed. No matter what branch he perched on, he was immediately chased away by a flock of crows, no matter what tree he flew up to, he was immediately chased out. There was nothing left for him but to walk on the ground and hop like an ordinary village hen. Besides, on the ground totally distinct birds walked and hopped most often. Those were pigeons, sparrows and tits.
It so happened, of course, they argued with each other and even fought, but generally they were nice and kind. They gladly accepted our little fledgling crow into their avian company. The little fledgling сrow was very grateful to them for that.
However, he was eager to be with his flock. He watched for a flock of crows flying in the sky. It was nice. He believed and hoped that once he would be accepted into the flock, because his mommy said that his brothers and sisters were also there.
Nearly a year passed. Our fledgling crow had become big and strong but as before he was out of his flock. The flock of crows wouldn’t accept him.
One day in early spring the fledgling crow watched the crows building and repairing their old nests. He was willing to help them. The fledgling crow took a good branchlet in its beak and flipped it into one of the unfinished nests. The crow, the owner of the nest, saw this and croaked:
-Are you going to take my place? Do you want to take my nest from me? You are a thief, thief!
They have started such a racket! All the crows flew in and started to shout at the fledgling- crow vying with each other.
He wasn't offended. He was only upset that he was misunderstood but he could not explain that to anyone because no one wanted to hear his croaking.
One day the wind suddenly blew and the fledgling crow heard screaming baby-birds in one of the nests and their parents were not nearby. Obviously, they flew far looking for food. The fledgling-crow hardly flew up to the nest when it started raining real hard. To protect the baby-birds from the rain he had to cover them spreading his wings widely. The baby-birds calmed down, closed their eyes and continued to sleep blissfully. Then the mother-crow flew in and started croaking at full throat:
- You are an enemy! Did you want to kill my baby-birds?! Go while the going's good!
The fledgling-crow wasn't offended. He breathed a sigh of relief that their mother had finally returned. Now she would be able to protect her baby-birds from the bad weather.
The ubiquitous sparrows and tits saw the fledgling crow’s efforts in true light and only laughed at him:
- Why do you do that when you are not asked? See, they don't understand kindness.
The fledgling-crow kept silence and turned a deaf ear to the birds’ jokes. And he thought:
- Do I really need someone’s gratitude? I have enough kindness to share it. That's what my mother taught me.
He enjoyed every morning, afternoon and evening. He enjoyed the sun and even the rain. While raining the crows were sitting, frowning on the branches under the crowns of heavy foliage. Taking advantage of the rain, the fledgling-crow also covered himself under the foliage. He was sitting, bored and recalling his childhood and his mother.
Once when the fledging crow was walking on the green grass and calmly searching through the dry grass to find some insects, a sparrow flew up to him and gave a chirp:
- Look up! The big bird is soaring there. I’m worried. Will you protect me?
The fledging-crow answered:
- Don't be afraid, little fellow. I will keep my eyes wide open and won’t let anyone hurt you.
So, the fledging-crow flew into the sky and perched on top of the nearest tree to watch the strange bird that he had never seen before.
And the strange bird was circling high in the sky and it seemed there was no threat. But the fledging-crow kept a watchful eye on the strange bird. Suddenly the bird came off and flew down like an arrow. The fledging-crow was confused for a moment, but then, waking up, he realized that the strange bird was flying towards the trees where there was a nest with the baby-birds. The crows did not sit on the nests, but came back just for a few seconds to feed their baby-birds. The big bird was flying at warp speed. The fledging-crow without a moment’s hesitation short cutting the bird. The bird did not have a chance to grab one of the baby-birds with its huge claws when the fledging- crow crashed into the head of the large bird with its huge beak. The bird did not expect such a blow, lost the balance and flew off. One of the bird’s wings caught in a branch. The fledging-crow tried to peck the bird again, but the bird turned away and tried to attack him. The bird was larger than the fledging-crow and nevertheless the fledging-crow was ready to fight to protect the baby-birds. Then a flock of crows flew in and tried to peck both of them, the strange bird and the fledging crow. So, they barely escaped with their lives.
The crows screamed:
- Damned robbers! Robbers!!!
The fledging crow returned to the green grass. He was not offended by the crows, although he lost a few feathers in this skirmish. He was glad that the crows returned in time, otherwise he would have suffered even more from the big bird and perhaps he would not be able to save one of the baby-birds.
The sparrow who asked the fledging-crow for help nearly died with fright. But he feared not for himself, but for the fledging-crow. He hopped around him with joy:
- Chirp-chirp, chirp-chirp. Well done! You are a hero! You are a hero! I will tell all my friends about it.
- I wish not only my little friends understood me - the fledging crow sighed. - I really want the crows to understand me.
- Chirp-chirp, chirp-chirp, don’t be sad! The time will come, and someone from your flock will definitely love you as much as we love you.
Once the fledging crow flew into the park by chance where he had never been before and began to search the dry grass to find some food as usual, he saw a little man. The little man said delightedly:
- Mother, look! White crow! - and pointed a finger at him.
- Wow! It’s amazing! For the first time I can see a white crow! - exclaimed the big woman.
- White crow, white crow, - the little man shouted cheerfully. He threw the half-eaten bun for the fledging-crow to eat.
The fledging crow thought:
- Such a big piece of delicious food! I definitely have to share it with someone.
He beaked the bun and flew to look for someone who was really hungry. He didn't have to fly far. Not far away there was a dog running in the park but nobody fed the dog. The fledging-crow thought:
- This animal is bigger than me. He needs more food than me. So, I have to give this piece of the bun to this dog.
The fledging crow flew up to the dog and threw the bun right in front of his muzzle. The dog grabbed the bun and swallowed it in a moment.
The crows watched carefully everything that happened. As soon as the piece of the bun disappeared in the dog’s mouth, the crows were like a mad dog on the loose and screamed:
- That’s a shame! Albeit you are a white crow but still a crow and not a dog. If you were not hungry, you would give the bun to us. To us, to us..., - the crows screamed in the park.
For some reason, the scream of crows was unpleasant to the fledging-crow for the first time. This scream seemed very angry.
The fledging-crow took off and flew away, with no particular intent. Away, away, as far as possible from the flock of crows that did not want to understand him. He thought:
- I'm a white crow, that's why nobody loves me. I am a white crow. I am a shame for the whole flock. I'm doing everything wrong. Probably it would have been better if I had died in my childhood. But why my mother said that I was beautiful, smart and kind. This is probably not true. I should find a place with no birds of my kind.
The fledging-crow flew and flew... He flew far away. He spent summer among sparrows, tits, larks, nightingales, finches. However, when autumn came, it rained, frosts began, again he wanted to go back to his home ground. The flock of crows did not change their attitude towards him but old friends - sparrows and tits were very happy to have him back.
Another winter passed. The fledging-crow matured and turned into a lovely white crow. Once he was walking on the grass, sorting last year's rotten grass, looking for worms and insects and a young crow flew up to him. Some time they looked at each other. Then the crow started a conversation:
- I know you.
- Everybody knows me, but nobody loves me. Even people, when they see me, they always cry “white crow, white crow.”.
- Why don’t they love you? – asked the crow.
The white crow looked askew at the crow. How come she didn’t know “why”? Indeed, she was one of the flock of crows.
- And it doesn’t matter what am I – kind or angry, smart or stupid, strong or weak, devoted and faithful or a traitor. The main thing for them is to be like all the other crows. But as you see, I don’t look like them. I am white which means I am not worthy of being a member of your flock. I'm alone but I'm THE CROW. But I will never be different. I want to be kind, smart, devoted and faithful and... the crow thought to himself for a moment. - And white. I don't want to be like all crows! – the white crow straightened up proudly raising his black beak.
- And I like you precisely because you are not like anyone else. Let’s be friends, - suggested the young lady-crow.
- Then you will have to leave your flock, - warned the white crow.
- I'm already an adult. Nobody can decide my fate. I need a friend forever - kind, smart, devoted and faithful. And it's you! - exclaimed the young crow.
The white crow and the lady- crow became friends first and then fell in love with each other. It was time to build their nest. Not far away they found a single, tall tree. Having worked together, they built their cozy nest. The young crow laid her first five eggs. They were bluish-green with dark specks.
The white crow forbade his lovely wife to leave the nest. For almost three weeks he patiently fed her. No matter what the white crow thought about himself he did not want his children to be white.
And then the birth days of the baby-birds came. The white crow and his wife fed their babies taking turns. The baby-birds grew up. They did not consider their father, the white crow, to be somehow unusual. He was just a good and kind crow, albeit white. By autumn they formed their own small flock: father, mother and 5 young crows. In a year the flock increased by another 5 birds. And there were already 12 birds. Then some crows of this small flock started their own families. The white crow was happy.
You will be happy too if you meet a white crow.
Do you happen to know that crows live ten to fifteen years in average? Only white crows have not been seen for a long time, may be for a hundred years or even longer, one thousand years. Once mother-crow, who was 12 years old by that time, gave a birth - the only one baby-bird hatched. The first few days it was no different from the fledglings that the mother-crow hatched previously. Though, a few days after his birth, fluff started to appear and, for some reason, it was white. The Mommy-crow thought that probably it was because of her old age she had trouble seeing properly. However, mothers from neighboring nests also began to notice something unusual in the little baby-bird. They started gossiping about the case. The baby-bird’s mother didn't like it at all. She knew how virulent the tongues of gossipers could be and she made a decision to hide her baby-bird from curious eyes. She suggested her husband that they take turns in feeding the nestling given that they had only one baby-bird.
A few days later everyone forgot about the strange baby-bird, but the problem lingered. The fledgling crow grew quite fast and soon had genuine feathers instead of fluff, but unfortunately the feathers were white. The parents were very worried about the future fate of their only baby-bird. They wanted to keep the baby-bird in the nest as long as possible, but the active fledgling crow did not understand the reasons that would prevent him from flying out of the nest.
And then there were his first flights, first bugs and spiders which he treated himself to with pleasure. However, those first joyful days were gloomed. No matter what branch he perched on, he was immediately chased away by a flock of crows, no matter what tree he flew up to, he was immediately chased out. There was nothing left for him but to walk on the ground and hop like an ordinary village hen. Besides, on the ground totally distinct birds walked and hopped most often. Those were pigeons, sparrows and tits.
It so happened, of course, they argued with each other and even fought, but generally they were nice and kind. They gladly accepted our little fledgling crow into their avian company. The little fledgling сrow was very grateful to them for that.
However, he was eager to be with his flock. He watched for a flock of crows flying in the sky. It was nice. He believed and hoped that once he would be accepted into the flock, because his mommy said that his brothers and sisters were also there.
Nearly a year passed. Our fledgling crow had become big and strong but as before he was out of his flock. The flock of crows wouldn’t accept him.
One day in early spring the fledgling crow watched the crows building and repairing their old nests. He was willing to help them. The fledgling crow took a good branchlet in its beak and flipped it into one of the unfinished nests. The crow, the owner of the nest, saw this and croaked:
-Are you going to take my place? Do you want to take my nest from me? You are a thief, thief!
They have started such a racket! All the crows flew in and started to shout at the fledgling- crow vying with each other.
He wasn't offended. He was only upset that he was misunderstood but he could not explain that to anyone because no one wanted to hear his croaking.
One day the wind suddenly blew and the fledgling crow heard screaming baby-birds in one of the nests and their parents were not nearby. Obviously, they flew far looking for food. The fledgling-crow hardly flew up to the nest when it started raining real hard. To protect the baby-birds from the rain he had to cover them spreading his wings widely. The baby-birds calmed down, closed their eyes and continued to sleep blissfully. Then the mother-crow flew in and started croaking at full throat:
- You are an enemy! Did you want to kill my baby-birds?! Go while the going's good!
The fledgling-crow wasn't offended. He breathed a sigh of relief that their mother had finally returned. Now she would be able to protect her baby-birds from the bad weather.
The ubiquitous sparrows and tits saw the fledgling crow’s efforts in true light and only laughed at him:
- Why do you do that when you are not asked? See, they don't understand kindness.
The fledgling-crow kept silence and turned a deaf ear to the birds’ jokes. And he thought:
- Do I really need someone’s gratitude? I have enough kindness to share it. That's what my mother taught me.
He enjoyed every morning, afternoon and evening. He enjoyed the sun and even the rain. While raining the crows were sitting, frowning on the branches under the crowns of heavy foliage. Taking advantage of the rain, the fledgling-crow also covered himself under the foliage. He was sitting, bored and recalling his childhood and his mother.
Once when the fledging crow was walking on the green grass and calmly searching through the dry grass to find some insects, a sparrow flew up to him and gave a chirp:
- Look up! The big bird is soaring there. I’m worried. Will you protect me?
The fledging-crow answered:
- Don't be afraid, little fellow. I will keep my eyes wide open and won’t let anyone hurt you.
So, the fledging-crow flew into the sky and perched on top of the nearest tree to watch the strange bird that he had never seen before.
And the strange bird was circling high in the sky and it seemed there was no threat. But the fledging-crow kept a watchful eye on the strange bird. Suddenly the bird came off and flew down like an arrow. The fledging-crow was confused for a moment, but then, waking up, he realized that the strange bird was flying towards the trees where there was a nest with the baby-birds. The crows did not sit on the nests, but came back just for a few seconds to feed their baby-birds. The big bird was flying at warp speed. The fledging-crow without a moment’s hesitation short cutting the bird. The bird did not have a chance to grab one of the baby-birds with its huge claws when the fledging- crow crashed into the head of the large bird with its huge beak. The bird did not expect such a blow, lost the balance and flew off. One of the bird’s wings caught in a branch. The fledging-crow tried to peck the bird again, but the bird turned away and tried to attack him. The bird was larger than the fledging-crow and nevertheless the fledging-crow was ready to fight to protect the baby-birds. Then a flock of crows flew in and tried to peck both of them, the strange bird and the fledging crow. So, they barely escaped with their lives.
The crows screamed:
- Damned robbers! Robbers!!!
The fledging crow returned to the green grass. He was not offended by the crows, although he lost a few feathers in this skirmish. He was glad that the crows returned in time, otherwise he would have suffered even more from the big bird and perhaps he would not be able to save one of the baby-birds.
The sparrow who asked the fledging-crow for help nearly died with fright. But he feared not for himself, but for the fledging-crow. He hopped around him with joy:
- Chirp-chirp, chirp-chirp. Well done! You are a hero! You are a hero! I will tell all my friends about it.
- I wish not only my little friends understood me - the fledging crow sighed. - I really want the crows to understand me.
- Chirp-chirp, chirp-chirp, don’t be sad! The time will come, and someone from your flock will definitely love you as much as we love you.
Once the fledging crow flew into the park by chance where he had never been before and began to search the dry grass to find some food as usual, he saw a little man. The little man said delightedly:
- Mother, look! White crow! - and pointed a finger at him.
- Wow! It’s amazing! For the first time I can see a white crow! - exclaimed the big woman.
- White crow, white crow, - the little man shouted cheerfully. He threw the half-eaten bun for the fledging-crow to eat.
The fledging crow thought:
- Such a big piece of delicious food! I definitely have to share it with someone.
He beaked the bun and flew to look for someone who was really hungry. He didn't have to fly far. Not far away there was a dog running in the park but nobody fed the dog. The fledging-crow thought:
- This animal is bigger than me. He needs more food than me. So, I have to give this piece of the bun to this dog.
The fledging crow flew up to the dog and threw the bun right in front of his muzzle. The dog grabbed the bun and swallowed it in a moment.
The crows watched carefully everything that happened. As soon as the piece of the bun disappeared in the dog’s mouth, the crows were like a mad dog on the loose and screamed:
- That’s a shame! Albeit you are a white crow but still a crow and not a dog. If you were not hungry, you would give the bun to us. To us, to us..., - the crows screamed in the park.
For some reason, the scream of crows was unpleasant to the fledging-crow for the first time. This scream seemed very angry.
The fledging-crow took off and flew away, with no particular intent. Away, away, as far as possible from the flock of crows that did not want to understand him. He thought:
- I'm a white crow, that's why nobody loves me. I am a white crow. I am a shame for the whole flock. I'm doing everything wrong. Probably it would have been better if I had died in my childhood. But why my mother said that I was beautiful, smart and kind. This is probably not true. I should find a place with no birds of my kind.
The fledging-crow flew and flew... He flew far away. He spent summer among sparrows, tits, larks, nightingales, finches. However, when autumn came, it rained, frosts began, again he wanted to go back to his home ground. The flock of crows did not change their attitude towards him but old friends - sparrows and tits were very happy to have him back.
Another winter passed. The fledging-crow matured and turned into a lovely white crow. Once he was walking on the grass, sorting last year's rotten grass, looking for worms and insects and a young crow flew up to him. Some time they looked at each other. Then the crow started a conversation:
- I know you.
- Everybody knows me, but nobody loves me. Even people, when they see me, they always cry “white crow, white crow.”.
- Why don’t they love you? – asked the crow.
The white crow looked askew at the crow. How come she didn’t know “why”? Indeed, she was one of the flock of crows.
- And it doesn’t matter what am I – kind or angry, smart or stupid, strong or weak, devoted and faithful or a traitor. The main thing for them is to be like all the other crows. But as you see, I don’t look like them. I am white which means I am not worthy of being a member of your flock. I'm alone but I'm THE CROW. But I will never be different. I want to be kind, smart, devoted and faithful and... the crow thought to himself for a moment. - And white. I don't want to be like all crows! – the white crow straightened up proudly raising his black beak.
- And I like you precisely because you are not like anyone else. Let’s be friends, - suggested the young lady-crow.
- Then you will have to leave your flock, - warned the white crow.
- I'm already an adult. Nobody can decide my fate. I need a friend forever - kind, smart, devoted and faithful. And it's you! - exclaimed the young crow.
The white crow and the lady- crow became friends first and then fell in love with each other. It was time to build their nest. Not far away they found a single, tall tree. Having worked together, they built their cozy nest. The young crow laid her first five eggs. They were bluish-green with dark specks.
The white crow forbade his lovely wife to leave the nest. For almost three weeks he patiently fed her. No matter what the white crow thought about himself he did not want his children to be white.
And then the birth days of the baby-birds came. The white crow and his wife fed their babies taking turns. The baby-birds grew up. They did not consider their father, the white crow, to be somehow unusual. He was just a good and kind crow, albeit white. By autumn they formed their own small flock: father, mother and 5 young crows. In a year the flock increased by another 5 birds. And there were already 12 birds. Then some crows of this small flock started their own families. The white crow was happy.
You will be happy too if you meet a white crow.