Long ago, when people and animals could understand each other, a magician named Sonaike, came across a flock of dull brown birds singing beautifully in the bush.
Sonaike had never heard such beautiful singing before so he sat down by the road and listened to them. As he watched and listened, Sonaike started to grow jealous of the birds. “I wish I could sing as well as these birds,” he thought to himself.
After listening and watching them for a while, Sonaike decided to take the birds’ voices for himself. So, he approached them and introduced himself. “Good afternoon, birds. I have watched you working all morning, and I want to give you a gift. I will turn your dull feathers into beautiful and colourful ones. In exchange, I will take your voices as payment,” he said this because he knew the birds didn’t know how special they were.
The birds thought about this unusual offer for a few minutes and decided they wanted to be beautiful. Sonaike was pleased to hear this and he prepared a potion for them to drink. After drinking it, the birds grew beautiful, brightly coloured feathers. At the same time, Sonaike collected all their voices in a small calabash and swallowed it whole.
From that day, Sonaike sang beautifully and became famous for his amazing voice. The birds also became well known for their beauty even though they could no longer sing. Many of the birds were so beautiful that people hunted them for their feathers or to keep them as pets.
The End
The Morale of the Story:
This story teaches why it is important to be grateful for what you have.
