The Quarrel of the Quails

The Quarrel of the Quails

In a green forest there lived a great flock of quails.

They were small birds, but they were friendly. Together they searched for grains, sheltered from the rain, and warned one another of danger.

Among them was an old, wise quail. Whenever he gave a special call, the flock knew it was time to gather.

Not far away lived a bird catcher. He had learned to imitate that call.

One morning he hid behind the bushes and called, “Twee-twee! Come here!”

The quails thought it was their leader and flew down to the clearing.

Then the bird catcher threw a large net over them.

The birds beat their wings, but no one could escape alone.

A few were lucky enough to slip out. They flew back to the wise quail and told him what had happened.

Their leader thought for a long time.

“We are small,” he said at last. “But a net is heavy only for one bird. For the whole flock together, it may prove light.”

“What have you thought of?” asked the others.

“The next time the net falls, do not panic. Each of you must put your head through one of its meshes. At my signal, we will all fly up at once.”

The quails remembered the plan.

The next day, the bird catcher made the familiar call again.

The flock flew down.

Whoosh!

The net covered them.

“Are you ready?” cried the leader.

Each quail found a mesh.

“One! Two! Three!”

They all beat their wings at the same time.

The net rose above the ground.

The bird catcher sat down in amazement.

And the quails carried his net to some thorny bushes, caught it on the branches, and flew out from under it.

The same thing happened the following day.

And the day after that.

The bird catcher went home empty-handed, and each time he spent a long while pulling his net out of the thorns.

“These little birds have learned to act together,” he grumbled. “As long as they remain friendly, I shall never catch them.”

A few days passed.

One morning the quails were looking for grain at the edge of the forest. One of them landed clumsily and accidentally stepped on another’s foot.

“Ow! Watch where you land!”

“I am sorry. I did not mean to.”

“You are always doing things like that!”

“That is not true!”

Other quails flew over.

“What happened?”

“She stepped on me!”

“It was an accident!”

“I saw it. It really was an accident.”

“I think she ought to be more careful!”

Within a minute, it was no longer only two quails arguing. Half the flock was quarrelling.

By evening they had divided into two groups.

“Let them fly by themselves!”

“And we will!”

The wise leader tried to calm them.

“Friends, this quarrel began with an accident. Do not turn it into a real misfortune.”

But the angry birds would not listen.

The next morning, the bird catcher’s familiar call came from the bushes.

Some of the quails did not even think of danger. They were still arguing with one another.

The net fell.

“Heads through the meshes!” cried the leader. “Together!”

But one group replied, “Let them lift it first!”

The other group cried indignantly, “Why should we? Let them do it!”

“Together!” the leader called again.

But while they argued, the bird catcher ran up and tied the edges of the net.

The quails fell silent.

Now there was no time for quarrelling.

The bird catcher slung the net over his shoulder and set off along the path.

Inside, the birds swayed together, pressed close against one another.

The quail whose foot had been stepped on said softly, “I did not want this to happen because of me.”

Her neighbour answered, “And I truly did not mean to hurt you. I am sorry.”

The others began to look at one another too.

“We forgot our greatest secret,” someone whispered.

The wise leader nodded.

“It is not too late to remember it.”

The bird catcher walked past some low bushes.

“Get ready,” said the leader quietly. “When he puts the net down to rest, we shall all act together. No more ‘they go first’ or ‘we will not do it.’”

Soon the man did stop and lay the net on the ground beside a tree.

“One… two… three!”

Hundreds of little wings beat at once.

The net jumped, rose into the air, and flew toward the bushes.

The bird catcher could only throw up his hands.

The quails caught the net on the branches and slipped free, one after another.

This time no one argued over who should fly first.

That evening the flock gathered beneath a great tree.

“We can all make mistakes,” said the wise quail. “But the real danger begins when a small hurt becomes more important than what we can do together.”

The quail who had accidentally stepped on her friend’s foot moved closer.

“Peace?”

“Peace.”

And from that day on, whenever a dispute arose in the flock, someone was sure to say, “Remember the net.”

That was usually enough.

May this story leave a little light in your heart ✨