The Bird Lover

The Bird Lover

Long ago, an elderly woman lived beside a great lake with her daughter Minda and her younger son. Their home stood close to the water, where mist rose above the reeds each morning and birdsong lingered in the forest each evening.

Their family had once been large. But Muji Monedo, a powerful and cunning trickster spirit, had settled nearby. He liked to boast of his speed and challenge young men to races around the lake. He devised rules that gave his rivals almost no chance. Anyone who lost was humiliated, driven far from home, or forced to serve him. He brought sorrow to many families, and Minda’s home grew quiet and lonely.

Her mother often gazed at the path outside the window and sighed.

“If only our land would be peaceful again,” she said.

Minda hated seeing her mother sad. She helped with the household work, gathered berries, fetched water, and tried to laugh more often with her younger brother. Yet she too knew that there could be no true peace while Muji Monedo claimed to rule the surrounding forests.

One warm day, Minda went to the meadows to pick herbs. The sun was already sinking into the trees when she heard a song she had never heard before.

A small bird sat on a thin branch. Its feathers shone red and deep blue, as if the evening sky and the last ray of the sun had met in it.

The bird sang again. Its voice was so clear and kind that Minda forgot her weariness.

“How beautiful you are,” she said quietly.

The bird bowed its head, as if it understood her words.

The next day, Minda returned to the meadows, and the bird came back too. They met like this for many evenings. She told him about her mother, her little brother, and everyone’s fear of Muji Monedo. The bird listened closely, then answered with a song.

Once, when the sky was already red, Minda said:

“I wish you could speak to me in human words.”

At that moment, the bird flew down from the branch, touched the ground, and turned into a young traveler. There was a red feather on his head, and his cloak was a dark blue.

“My name is Monedova,” he said. “I have been listening to your words for a long time. I know how much grief Muji Monedo has brought. And I know that the time has come to stop him.”

Minda was surprised, but not frightened. She already knew Monedova’s voice, his calmness, and his kindness.

“Let’s go to my mother,” she said. “She must hear this for herself.”

At home, Monedova greeted the elderly woman and explained everything. He promised no easy miracle and did not pretend there was no danger. He simply said he would try to end Muji Monedo’s power over the surrounding lands.

From then on, Monedova often came to their house. He helped bring food, repaired the roof, played with the boy and every morning left a few feathers, red and blue, by the window. Minda trusted him more and more, and eventually she decided that she wanted to travel through life with him.

Muji Monedo soon heard that a stranger had come to the area and that people were no longer afraid.

One morning he came to the widow's house, leaning on a stick and pretending to be a weak old man.

“They say a swift young man lives here,” he said. “Surely he isn’t afraid to race me?”

Monedova came out to meet him.

“I’m not afraid of a race,” he replied. “But this time the rule will be fair. Whoever loses must never again harm the people beside the lake.”

Muji Monedo laughed. He was sure that he would win again with his tricks.

The whole village gathered at the water’s edge. The course led around the lake, through a pine forest, over a rocky hill, and across a broad meadow, before returning to an old post on the shore.

The signal was given, and the rivals ran.

At first, Muji Monedo stayed behind. But as soon as the trees hid him from view, he turned into a fox and raced through the bushes along a shortcut.

Monedova noticed this. He turned into a red-and-blue bird, flew easily across the ravine and turned back into a young man.

Muji became angry. Beyond the forest, he turned into a wolf and rushed forward with long leaps.

Monedova rose above the treetops and again overtook him.

Then Muji turned into a swift deer. The ground trembled under his hooves, but Monedova soared over the swamp, where the deer had to look for a dry detour.

With only the final stretch left to run, Muji Monedo tried his greatest trick. He became an enormous bison and charged across the meadow, raising a cloud of dust.

The people near the lake saw a dark cloud approaching from afar and became worried.

But suddenly a red spot flashed above it. Monedova flew high, like a small piece of the evening sky.

Just before the finish, Monedova landed, became human again, and reached the old post first.

Silence reigned on the shore.

Muji Monedo came running after him. He was furious.

“That doesn’t count!” he shouted. “You flew!”

Monedova calmly replied:

“And you were a fox, a wolf, a deer, and a bison. We both used our gifts. But you gave your word.”

The people around nodded. For the first time, Muji could not change the rules after the race, because everyone had seen his tricks.

He tried to turn into a powerful beast again, but nothing happened. The power he had abused had left him. He became an ordinary angry old man, whom no one was afraid of anymore.

“You have lost,” said Monedova. “And from now on you will not harm the people near this lake.”

Muji Monedo went away. He went far beyond the hills and never returned.

That evening, for the first time in years, the widow’s house was filled with joy. Neighbours brought food, children ran beside the water, and Minda’s mother sat by the fire, smiling.

When the celebration died down, Monedova said:

“I did not come here by chance. I had to help free these places from fear. Now my path calls me further.”

Minda looked at her mother, who already knew her daughter had made her choice.

“Go if your heart leads you,” she said. “Our home will always be your home.”

Monedova held out his hand to Minda.

“You can stay. Or you can fly with me. The choice is yours.”

Minda smiled.

“I want to see the world from above.”

They went out to the lake. A pink evening mist already lay over the water. Monedova became a red-and-blue bird. A second bird appeared next to him, just as bright and light.

The two birds rose above the reeds, circled the house, and flew into the forest.

They say Minda’s mother and younger brother never went hungry again. People remembered them and helped them, just as Monedova had once helped the whole region.

Each spring, a pair of red-and-blue birds appeared beside the lake again and again. They perched on a branch near the house and sang so clearly that even the busiest people stopped to listen.

And the old mother always recognized this song.

“That’s Minda,” she told the boy. “She’s come to say that all is well.”

Ever since, the people beside the lake have told their children that true strength does not mean making others afraid. The strongest person protects others, never humiliates those who are weaker, and never lets cheating pass for a fair victory.

May this story leave a little light in your heart ✨