chicken scratch

Once upon a time there was an eagle that thought it was a chicken. His name was Howie. Howie lived in a chicken coop and spent its days scratching around in the dirt with the other chickens in a fenced-in pen on a farm. Sometimes he wondered why he seemed to look and feel different than all the other chickens, but he had enough food to eat, and was kept safe and warm in the coop, so he decided this was his happy safe little place in life, so he just settled for the life of a chicken. Ignored the restlessness in his wings, that feeling that he was meant for something different, something that would give him a much greater view of things, something that would feel more like his true calling. The other chickens told him that there were wolves outside the pen, and other scary things that might hurt them, so he just took their advice and didn't try anything risky.

Then one day a real eagle went flying by, circled overhead, and landed with a flutter just outside the chicken coop. The chickens all scattered away from the fence, but Howie just stood there, mesmerized by this strange, somewhat familiar-looking creature that was standing there staring at him. There seemed a sense of connection, but Howie couldn't tell what it was. And besides, he was just a chicken, he thought. The other eagle's name was Ricardo. "Hey!" said Ricardo. "What are you doing in a chicken coop?" To which Howie explained that this was his home, of course, because he was a chicken. Ricardo shook his head and tried to convince Howie otherwise, but Howie kept reminding him of the dangers that lurked out in the wild, and how he was kept safe and warm on the farm so why should he desire anything else?

This went on for a long time, with Ricardo visiting Howie often, just to chat. They had a lot of things in common, of course, so talk came easy, though Howie couldn't put his finger, er, his talon on what it was that made them so alike. Ricardo would often encourage Howie to spread his wings and try to fly, but Howie would just say "oh, no, no, no, I couldn't do that...besides, what would all the other chickens think of me?"

One day after a heavy rain, Ricardo came soaring out from the woods, circled the farm as usual, and fluttered down next to a large mud puddle next to the chicken pen. "Howie! Howie!" he called. "Come and look!" Howie pecked his way over to the fence, where he could see the deep water of the mud puddle glistening and reflecting the sky on this clear sunny day. Ricardo excitedly motioned for Howie to move closer and take a good look at the mirror-like reflection in the puddle. So Howie looked, and when he saw that his reflection looked almost identical to Ricardo's, he suddenly realized the truth: he was not a chicken after all; he was an eagle! A beautiful, majestic eagle that longed to soar through the sky and fly beyond the confines of this farm, to use his gifts and talents to reach places he never before dreamed he could go, to courageously venture into new territory, conquer his fears and live the adventure of a lifetime with his buddy Ricardo.

And that's the end of a rather cheesy story that I hope is also a bit encouraging. We can all be eagles. We just need a little encouragement.

 

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