The Jay and the
Peacock
Grizzly refilled Shep's drink once more. He checked on Fox who had
drifted off to sleep with his head still on the bar. He finally sat
down behind the bar and took a deep breath. He faintly heard flapping
wings nearby, getting louder and louder. He looked all around but
couldn't find out where it was coming from. Then suddenly a beautiful
blue jay swooped through the open window.
Fox picks his head up from the bar. Shep stares at the blue jay. They
are both in awe of how beautiful this blue jay is.
"Well hello," said Grizzly. "What can I get for ya?"
"Are you Grizzly? I mean, THE Grizzly?" said the blue jay.
"Well yeah, I'm Grizzly."
"My friend referred me to you. I am quite pleased to meet you. I simply
need to talk out my problems and I hear that you're the best listener
around here. I'm Jay."
"Nice to meet ya, Jay. What can I get ya to drink to start off with?"
asked Grizzly.
"I'd love a cup of your best hot tea," said Jay.
"Done, now what's the problem today?" asked Grizzly as he grabbed a
teacup from the cabinet.
"My reputation, it was so perfect. Now it is completely ruined!" said
Jay as he raised his wings over his face in embarrassment.
"Oh, I'm sure it's not all bad. What happened?"
"My whole life I've been teased for being perfect -- from my wing
structure to my grammar. I happen to pride myself on being perfect. But
it has brought me so much pressure. So when I moved here about two
months ago, I tried to fit in better. Some of my peers were having a
grand time playing with peacock feathers that they had found on the
ground. I thought they would appreciate it if I grabbed many feathers
and made myself look like a peacock. They were laughing so hard at the
other birds who were only holding one feather, so I figured that if I
used
more and attached them to myself, they would laugh even harder. But my
plan backfired. I wanted my feathers to be lined up perfectly before I
showed my peers. So I went to the carpenter's shop and used the glue
that I found. After a few hours, they were perfect! I was ready to make
my new friends."
Grizzly set his steaming cup of tea down in front of him and then sat
down
behind the bar, listening intently. "Okay, go on."
He sipped his tea and made a face. "Can I get two sugars and some
non-fat milk?"
"Absolutely." Grizzly stood back up to fetch them.
"I walked out of the carpenter's shop and guess who I see right when I
exit!"
"Uh oh, I hope you didn't see the peacocks. They're very moody," said
Grizzly.
"Precisely. I saw a flock of peacocks. Initially, they thought that I
was one of them. So they began to walk toward me. But soon enough, they
realized that I was only a blue jay. They were so offended by my
impersonation that they all started squawking as they were walking
toward me. They got closer and closer, and when they arrived, they
began to pick my attached peacock feathers out. The problem was that
the
glue I used made it extremely painful when they pulled the peacock
feathers out."
"Ouch!" said Grizzly, "that sounds awful! I guess your precision in
putting the feathers on didn't pay off. Did the other blue jays see
this?"
"Yes. Indeed they did. They just shook their heads in disgust for
taking the joke too far. But I didn't mean to. And then I saw a man
pass by. He was quite ugly and had a notebook in his hands. Ever since
I saw that man, no one has treated me the same."
"Ohhh no... That was Aesop. He misrepresents so many animals and people
around here. Just ask Shep and Fox." Grizzly pointed to his other
customers at the bar, and they shook their heads as they emptied their
drinks once again.
"Well that explains how everyone found out. To top everything off, my
feathers are all disheveled in the back now. If I had only tried to
make friends by talking to them rather than trying to impress them, I
might not be in this situation."
"It's true. You seem like a nice bird, Jay. I'm sure people will come
around. Just give them a few days," said Grizzly.
"I hope you are correct, Grizzly. In the meantime, I'll have what he's
having," as he pointed to Shep.
"Coming right up," said Grizzly.
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Author's Note: I retold the story of the Jay and the Peacock.
In the original story, it is very brief and gives the impression that
the bird was trying to be a peacock. The blue jay was said to have gone
toward the other peacocks on purpose. The way I retold the story, I
explained that the blue jay didn’t mean to run into the peacocks.
He was simply putting the peacock feathers on so that he could make
friends because he was new in town. He was a perfectionist, which is
why the other peacocks initially didn’t see that he was a blue jay. It
wasn’t until they came closer that they realized he wasn’t a peacock.
In the end, in my retelling, I explained how misunderstood the blue jay
was because he tried so hard to fit in, and ended up getting hurt and
not making any friends. He explains his unfortunate story to Grizzly.
He isn’t aware of Aesop, the reporter who often gives certain people
or animals a bad name. Grizzly explains Aesop to the blue jay and
explains that it will get better. Grizzly gives him drinks and provides
him a place to wait out the bad judgments that people are making on him
because of Aesop’s report on him.
Image Source: AnnMorashBlog
"The Jay and
the Peacock" retold by Joseph Jacobs from Aesop's Fables
(1909). Website: Bartleby.com.