HEN AND EAGLE

Once upon a time
A Hen saw a fallen eaglet
…while feeding its chicks in the forest
This Hen added the eaglet to her chicks
Always breaking its claws
And removing its feathers to stop its wings from strengthening

II
The Fowl Kingdom asked Hen to either kill the eaglet
…or let it loose
But Hen refused to listen
She claimed she could keep the eaglet close
Tame it
And use it to its advantage

III
True to her words
The eaglet grew to love the breakage of its claws
…and the defeathering of its wings
Because they helped it fit into Hen’s family
While hen hatched and sent off its chicks
…to live on their own
She kept the eagle close
For even in its helpless state,
The eagle scared hawks off its fowl family
…with its mere presence
And so Hen walked with her wings high
Feeling like the trophy of the kingdom

IV
There came a time
Nature got furious
Heavy rains and angry winds descended on their land
…without warning
As other Hens sought cover with their chicks
And other Cocks run to safety to save their lives
Hen in its pomposity relaxed
Thinking to fly with her family
…on the wings of the Eagle
But that was just not meant to be

V
The Eagle fell whenever hen climbed onto its weak wings
It could neither fly high nor run fast
Whereas others hid in their burrowed holes
Hen had no where to hide with her family
Because she always thought Eagle
Could fly them out when danger befalls the land
By the time the fury of nature calmed,
Hen lost all her twelve chicks
And suffered from broken wings and legs
She also lost Eagle to the strong winds

VI
Queen of the Fowl Kingdom
Called for Hen
In its vegetable state
To be brought to the meeting square
There, she said:
“What happened to hen must teach us a lesson
You get nothing from a strength untrained
If your initial fear makes you force that strength
…into a weakness
It’ll forever remain that weakness by your side
Being kowtowed by a stronger force today
Might elevate your pride into superior mode
But in times of trouble
When your weakness needs that strength
…to bail you out
You’ll realize your pride bought its strength with your weakness
And that strength can never be resold to save you
Let all the Fowl Kingdom learn from this experience”
That ended the tale of the hen and the eagle
Amoafowaa Sefa Cecilia © August 29, 2020