The Blue Jay Who Had No Crown
Blue Jay had been flying fast – darting and dodging, looking for bugs or some tasty seeds to eat.
Suddenly, he felt a hard knock to his head and everything went black.
He opened his eyes, and there lying before him was one feather, somewhat bent, and he wondered was it his? But it was a natural thing for Blue Jays to lose a feather now and then, and so he thought nothing of it. Shaken, but able to fly, Blue Jay took flight once again, and landed upon a favorite feeding spot, where some generous two-legged often left seeds. Blue Jay especially loved the sunflower seeds.
He was happily eating and listening to all the sounds of his brother and sister Blue Jays that echoed through the deep north woods. Suddenly, he heard their laughter and several Blue Jays landed and perched on the large elm pine close by to where he was feeding.
“Oh my! Oh my!” One of the Blue Jays said laughing and then all the others began to laugh too.
“Look at him!” “He has no crown of feathers on his head!” “What happened to you jay? Who plucked your head today?” All the Blue Jays laughed and laughed.
There was one Blue Jay known as Dark Jay. He could be mean at times and he often hurt the other Blue Jays that shared the woods. Dark Jay landed close by and took one look at Blue Jay and laughed louder than all the rest had.
“What happened to you, you fool? You are not a Blue Jay! You are ugly! You have no fine crown of feathers on top of your head like I do! You’re not one of us!” And he laughed and laughed and the others began to join in.
Blue Jay did not understand – but he knew somehow he was different than he had been before.
He flew away from the feeding spot and off into the woods. He felt so sad and alone. He didn’t know what to do. He felt the need for a cool drink, so he landed at the clear pond in the deep woods and perched on a rock to take a drink. As he leaned over – he caught a reflection of himself in the clear water.
He had no crown of feathers on his head! What happened? Where did they go?
Now he understood why the other birds laughed at him. He was so ashamed. Without his crown of feathers, he was, as Dark Jay had said, not a Blue Jay after all.
He flew deeper into the woods. He wanted only to hide himself. He was ashamed and knew he no longer was welcome to join with the other Blue Jays. They had laughed at him and made fun of him and Dark Jay had said you are not one of us. He was right. What was a Blue Jay without his crown of feathers?
Many days passed. The other Blue Jays talked about Blue Jay for a while. Dark Jay laughed and made jokes about him and the other Blue Jays laughed too. Most of the Blue Jays did not truly feel as Dark Jay did however. Some of them felt sad for Blue Jay and missed him and wondered where he had gone. They wondered how it came to be, that he had lost his Feathered Crown. But they were afraid of Dark Jay – and rather than stand up to him, it was easier and safer to simply go along with him.
One bright sunny afternoon, Dark Jay was flying through the deep north woods, enjoying the tasty insects he found on his way, proudly flying about – for he was, after all, the finest Blue Jay of them all.
He perched on a branch to check something which was hanging from it; he didn’t want to miss out on any tasty food, when suddenly he was blinded by a bright light. The sun was already shining; this light was different.
Suddenly, he heard a voice.
“Dark Jay.”
The voice was loud but not frightening, the voice was strong, but seemed kind.
He looked up into the light, but he did not see anything.
“Dark Jay. It is I, your Creator.”
For the first time in his life, Dark Jay had no words to say. He knew he was in the presence of the Great One and while he was fearful, he stayed perched where he landed, listening, intent, and quiet.
“Dark Jay, you have wronged a brother. You have hurt another simply because he is different than you. Just because Blue Jay has no Crown of Feathers does not make him less important than any other Blue Jay in the forest. He is as much loved as you are.”
Dark Jay did not know what to say, he bowed his head and remained quiet.
“Dark Jay do you know how Blue Jay lost his Feathered Crown?”
“No Great One.” Dark Jay whispered.
“A Great Hawk flew by as Blue Jay was flying one day, and attacked Blue Jay. But Blue Jay put up a mighty fight with the Great Hawk, because he valued his life, and most of all, he valued the life I gave to him.”
“Just because Blue Jay does not look like you, or the other Blue Jays in the forest, does not mean he is not one of you. He will always be a Blue Jay. For I created him as such. You must go and find Blue Jay, and tell him you are sorry and bring him home.”
“Oh Great One!” Dark Jay said. “I am so sorry. I truly am! I did not know. I did not think! I give you my word of honor I will find him and bring him home. I will tell him I am sorry and I will never hurt him or anyone else again.”
The Great Light disappeared and immediately Dark Jay started to fly as fast as he could throughout the deep woods searching for Blue Jay. He called out again and again – hoping to hear Blue Jay call back. He was thirsty so he stopped a moment by the clear water to take a quick drink and he could hear a quiet sound somewhere in the thick trees.
“Blue Jay is that you? It is I, Dark Jay.”
Blue Jay remained hidden. He did not want Dark Jay to see him, he did not want to hear his harsh words or feel even sadder than he did already.
“Blue Jay! Please answer me! I have come to tell you I am sorry. I did not mean to hurt you. I am sorry that I did. Please Blue Jay come back home with me? We are brothers, we are all Blue Jays – and it does not matter whether you have a Crown of Feathers or not, you are one of us.”
Blue Jay could not believe his ears at first. Was this Dark Jay talking? Or a trickster? He looked closely – yes it was indeed Dark Jay – he was certain of that. So, very cautiously, he flew from his hiding place and joined Dark Jay by the clear water.
“Oh brother Blue Jay! I am so glad I have found you. I am sorry I hurt you. I was very wrong. Please forgive me.”
Blue Jay stared into the eyes of his brother Dark Jay. “I accept your apology Dark Jay. Thank you for coming to look for me. I have missed my family and friends so much.”
“Blue Jay I was very wrong.” Dark Jay said. “The Great One came to me. He told me of your courage in fighting for your life – in fighting off the Great Hawk who came to take your life. The Great One said that we are all brothers and that even though you’re Crown of Feathers may be gone, it does not make you any less than any one of us. I have learned a valuable lesson today Blue Jay. How hurtful words can be to others of our kind. I promise to never live my life this way again.”
Suddenly the same bright light that Dark Jay had seen appeared again and as quickly as it had appeared it was gone.
“Blue Jay! You have your Crown of Feathers back! They are the most beautiful Crown of Feathers I have ever seen!”
Blue Jay peered into the clear waters and saw, that indeed, his Crown of Feathers had returned, so blue and glorious, better than his Crown of Feathers had ever been.
Blue Jay and Dark Jay looked into each other’s eyes and without speaking further, they flew off together through the deep north woods and to home and family.
Never again did Dark Jay laugh at others or hurt others with his words and he and Blue Jay became close brothers who spent their days together in the Great North Woods.
Svhyeyi Aga
Cherokee
August 20, 2002 ©
