Once upon a time, in a lush green forest, lived a beautiful bird named Birdie. Birdie was known for its stunning appearance and its sweet melody. One day, a young girl came to the forest and saw Birdie perched on a tree branch.
“Birdie, Birdie, will you pet? Summer is far and far away yet. I have a silken quilt and a feather bed, And a pillow of satin for your head,” the girl said, hoping to coax Birdie down.
But Birdie replied, “I’d rather sleep in the ivy wall, no rain comes through, though I hear it fall; The sun peeps out at dawn of day. And I sing and wing away, away.”
The girl was persistent and offered Birdie diamonds, amber, and jet to entice it to come down from the tree. “I’ll make a necklace, fair and fine, to please this pretty bird of mine,” she said.
But Birdie declined, saying, “Oh! Thanks for diamonds and thanks for jet, But there is something costlier yet: A feather necklace, round and round. That I wouldn’t sell for a thousand pound.”
The girl then offered Birdie a dish of silver fret, a golden cup, and an ivy seat. “And carpets soft beneath your feet,” she said.
But Birdie was not tempted by material possessions. “Can running water be drunk from gold? Can a silver dish the forest hold? A rocking twig is the finest chair. And the softest paths lie through the air. Good-bye, good-bye, to my lady fair.”
With that, Birdie flew away, leaving the girl to ponder its wisdom. She realized that some things in life are more valuable than material possessions and that nature provides its own beauty and comfort. From that day on, the girl learned to appreciate the simple things in life and the beauty of nature.
