The most beautiful bird

                                  The most beautiful bird

                  If you thought this story was about a peacock, then it is not. It is about a pretty little girl, named Ritu. She was a first grader. She was a beautiful girl with big round eyes and a cheerful face. She was a kind-hearted child too. But she studied among kids who thought beauty was only skin deep and being fair of face was more important than being fair at heart. This made school life difficult for her because she was dark-skinned. 

                Every day she could come home and wail, “ I don’t want to go to school tomorrow. The girls are being mean to me.” Her mother tried comforting her every day and encouraged her to go to school the next day. 

               However, when Ritu came back each day disheartened and her self-esteem seemed to low. Her mother decided to put an end to it. She called Ritu to herself and asked her, 

                  “ Ritu, do you think you are beautiful.?” 

            Ritu replied, “ I have always felt pretty, but the words of my classmates make me think otherwise now.”

            Hmmm,” said her mother. “Well, then it’s time you heard a story and learned an important lesson.”

            “A story?” asked Ritu excitedly forgetting all her worries for the moment.

            “Yes, a story,” replied her mother.

           “Once upon a time, all the birds in the forest decided to conduct a pageant contest. They wanted to know who was the most beautiful among them. All the most beautiful-looking birds came to the contest- the peacock, the crowned pigeon, the toucan, the pheasant and many others. And finally, the owl came along. When the other birds saw the owl, they began to make fun of it. 

              ‘Hey owl, why did you come here? Don’t you know that this is a contest for the most beautiful bird? Or did you walk in accidentally not knowing where you were going seeing that you cannot see in the daytime?’ said the birds and roared with laughter.

               The owl replied, “ I know where I was going and came here because I know I am beautiful.”

               'Well it’s really true then that you cannot see,' laughed the birds, leaving to stand in the queue where they were to show off their beautiful features. The owl waited behind them all. 

                 In the distance, a hunter was gleefully watching the group of the most beautiful birds gathered in one place through his binoculars. He couldn’t make out why all these birds were in one place, but it made him very happy and excited. For if could catch them all that could mean an enormous sum of money. So, he approached the place where the birds were gathered quietly.

                  The birds on the other hand were so busy and preoccupied with their pageant show that they failed to notice the hunter. The owl, which couldn’t see well in the daytime was rather very sharp in it’s ears. Some say that it has an ultrasound sensitivity. The owl heard the hunter's approaching footsteps. And for a moment, it wanted to fly away leaving behind the proud and arrogant birds to be caught in the hunter’s nut. But, it decided to save them all. 

                    It hooted very loudly and cried, “A hunter is coming, a hunter is coming” before it took off. The birds who heard the owls cry fled from the place within seconds. When the hunter reached the place where the birds had gathered, there was neither a bird nor a feather. The disappointed hunter went back.

                     When the evening fell all the birds came to meet the owl. They felt ashamed for taunting it and wanted to say sorry. The owl said, “ I did feel the urge to fly away and let you all be caught in the hunter’s net. But I had done that, then I am not as beautiful as I had thought. I didn’t want to turn that ugly and nasty, so I helped you.”

                     The birds felt even more ashamed and horrible on hearing this and hung down their heads. However a little sparrow said, “I think you are the most beautiful bird, for you saved your mockers and that I beauty beyond anything I have seen,”

All the birds agreed with the little sparrow and crowned the owl as the pageant winner, declaring it to be the most beautiful bird.

                   “Now, you understood Ritu”, asked her mom 

                  “ Beauty is more than skin deep. The owl did not change it’s preceptive on beauty heeding the other birds. It remained beautiful by helping those who mocked it. The same should be true about you. Let not what others say change your mind. You are beautiful because you are the most kind-hearted kid I have ever seen, that’s your beauty trait.”

                    Ritu understood what her mom wanted her to realise. She reminded herself that she was beautiful no matter what the mean little kids at school said or did to her. From that day on, while the others showed off their pretty faces, Ritu showed off her kindness.