The Crow & the Sparrow

Once upon a time in the faraway woods there was a big old Banyan tree. It was a very huge, green tree. Now this was not like any other tree, it was the home of many different birds. It had many strong branches that could support the nests of many birds. It was a safe haven for the birds as the tree stood strong with its roots firmly in the ground & no thunder or fierce wind could shake it. On the same Banyan tree there lived a crow & a sparrow they were very good friends. They lived there with their families. They did all the things together like going in search for food, teaching their children how to fly, feeding their children, flying together everywhere & spending the leisure time together. They even had their nests on the same branch. All the birds lived happily.

Days were passing by & there was no scarcity of food water or anything else. There was also a brook nearby, that sufficed their need & everything was going on well. One unfortunate year there were no rains, the crops in the fields were destroyed, the animals started moving away from the woods in search of food & water, even the babbling brook was drying up. It looked as if it was autumn. The birds of the banyan tree were also worried with the brook drying up as there was no source of water for them or the tree, & because of the drought there was no food available nearby; they had to fly far to get some food for them & their children.

One day the crow & sparrow met & thought that this problem is really grave & they should do something about it & find a solution to it. The sparrow said, “ We have to move to a new place, we cant stay here, our food supplies can last only for 3 or 4 days, we have to do something”, “But where can we go, it is drought everywhere, we have to search for a place to stay” said the crow. They both thought for a while then the crow said “Tomorrow I will get up in the morning & go in search of a nice & suitable place for us to stay. I will come back soon & then we all can go there together”. “Ok” said the sparrow & they went to their home. Next day in the morning the crow flew off early in search of a place. The crow flew far, it was almost the time of sunset but he could find any nice place so he thought, “I will rest here on some tree for the night & then again get on with my search in the morning”. So he flew down & selected a tree with strong branches & perched on one of its branch for the night. The next day in the morning as the sun rose in the sky the crow got up & again continued his journey. He was feeling very tired & weak as he was flying continuously for two days now, but he did not lose hope & kept flying. By the time it was evening the crow had flown very, very far away from his nest on the banyan tree. Suddenly while gazing here & there he looked down & saw that there was a nice pond filled with water; it was surrounded by green shady trees with lots of birds chirping & playing around.

The trees were laden with yummy fruits & the water of the pond was fresh with lotus & lilies growing in it. It was a very happy scene. The crow quickly flew down & nearly fainted reaching on the ground. The birds there immediately gathered around him, they sprinkled some cool water from the pond on his face & made him drink some. He was really very exhausted due to flying for two days. The kind birds then picked some juicy fruits from the nearby trees & offered them to the crow. After eating, drinking & taking rest the crow gained some strength, he went to the birds & thanked them for their help, then he told them about the drought in their woods & how the brook had dried & there was nothing left to eat.

Everybody felt sad to hear it, and then the wise old owl amongst the birds spoke, “My dear crow why don’t you & your family move here, to our area, we would all be very happy to have some new friends. There is enough food & water for everybody, all of us can live here happily”, the crow thanked the wise old owl for the invitation but he then remembered about sparrow, “Thank you kind sir, but I have a very good friend back there, the sparrow, I cannot leave her behind in distress, I have to help her & her family”, “Oh! That is not a problem at all, you can also bring the sparrow & her family here along with you, and we would indeed be delighted to have such good people who care about each other. The more the merrier”, said the Owl smiling. The crow felt very happy & decided that he would fly back the next day early in the morning & inform the sparrow & all about his findings & he went off to sleep.

There the folks on the banyan tree were worried about the crow as it had been two days & still there was no sign of him. The sparrow decided to wait for a day & then go to with a search party to find him.

The next morning the crow got up early in the morning & started for the banyan tree. It took him two days to find a nice place to stay but it only took him only a day to reach back to his home on the banyan tree, it was all due to his excitement & the strength that he had gained after eating those delicious fruits of the trees near the pond. The crow reached his home late at night, everybody was relieved & happy to see him, and he excitedly told them all about the pond, shady trees, yummy fruits & also the friendly birds. Everybody felt very happy to hear that & decided to fly over to the new place right away in the morning, the sparrow thanked the crow for helping her too & they all went off to sleep with a smile on their face.

The next morning at dawn the crow, sparrow & their families packed their bags & started their journey towards their new home. They all flew swiftly, flapping their wings and by the evening time they decided to spend the night on some tree as the kids were very tired. The next morning they all resumed their journey & by the end of the day they could finally see a green patch on the ground far below. The crow knew the way; he led them all to the pond, they gaped in amazement looking at the scenic beauty of the place. All the birds including the wise old owl gathered near them & welcomed them, chirping & twittering. The crow then introduced the sparrow, her family & his family to the birds gathered there, who had brought some juicy fruits for the guests for dinner, thinking that they must all be tired because of the journey. The sparrow liked the place very much, she said “Thank you my friend for helping me & my family find such a beautiful place to stay with all such kind people. Let us all sleep now, it’s already getting dark, we will start building the nests tomorrow.” Then the owl assured the sparrow saying, “Don’t you worry dear sparrow we will all help you build the nest tomorrow & you will see that it will be built in no time”. Then they all wished each other good night & went off to bed.

As the sun rose in the sky all the birds got up & were off to find strong twigs, pieces of cloth, cotton needed to build the nests, soon they all gathered the things needed & by the end of the day they had all together built 2 beautiful, cosy nests for crow’s family & sparrow’s family. The sparrow & crow thanked them all for helping them & felt really lucky to have found such a place to stay. All the birds gathered around the pond, danced, sang songs, played games & celebrated for they had got some new nice friends & then they all lived happily ever after…