THE EAGLE KING

In there somewhere in the clouds, where only birds can fly, the Eagle king arrives.

There in the clouds where birds have their nests and where their kingdom resides.

Only them and no one else knows the way. Only they can find their paradise.

There is that paradise above the peaks of those huge rocks.

Their king arrives there.

The sun was quite far away, who knows, maybe it was about to go to bed slowly. When he appeared on Bird Mountain after many weeks, no one was waiting for him, no one welcomed him, but he was still glad to be home again. Although he was king, he did not need any celebrations and greetings, he never tolerated much.

Most of all, he loved his freedom and heights and flying, and when he was tired he sat on the tallest tree and watched in silence what was happening beneath it. That was his world, the one he loved so much and dreamed of and he didn’t want it to ever change. No, he had never been lonely. He had his world and so he was happy. As the sun got up, he liked to watch its endless journey to the horizon. It was the same every day, every day again and again. And when it was so high that no one could reach it, it spread his wings and exposed them to its rays. Its wings glistened in the sunlight until it looked like he was bathing in it. Even though it seemed dangerous, he knew the sun wouldn’t burn him because it just couldn’t, it’s too high. So day after day passed, and week alternated the next week. Until he knew he had to go back to his kingdom. The other birds loved him. They were only a little sorry that their king, the wise and just ruler, so often spent his time in the treetops and not in the gardens of their paradise.
It was late afternoon when he walked through the quiet garden, where the wind sometimes played in the branches and where the sun’s rays now only fell little. Darkness was coming, so no one expected him, and he was glad that this is the case. Escape all those views, questions and pleas. He had only one wish, to be back down there on the ground. He was so tired that he didn’t even notice that a rather tiny bird was watching him from afar. It was Sparrow, that eternally smiley chuckles who kept picking on everyone and everything. As soon as you drove him away, he was back. Nothing was sacred to him. Cheeky one feathered. The Eagle reached the end of the garden, there is a small door at the very back, which, as quietly as a night butterfly, slipped through to his royal palace.
In the morning, when he reappeared in the garden, already the sun was high in the sky, he quickly jumped to the silver well to soak a few feathers and refresh himself a little. It was just a hot day, although the summer was slowly about to hand over its rule into the fall, it still managed to warm up the bird’s feathers until one had to cool down a bit. Especially when he has a difficult day full of decisions and solutions to all possible proposals, pleas and disputes in his bird kingdom. For a small moment, he paused at the very edge of the garden and took a deep breath. Today is a really long day ahead of him. Slowly and prudently, he walked through the middle of the courtyard to his throne and sat on it. He looked around quietly and saw so many birds that he couldn’t even count them. He didn’t even notice the little Sparrow standing so far back.

He nodded at Bubo, who was already looking for him impatiently. Bubo bowed slightly and began to calm all of the twittering and straighten them into pretty neat ranks. The Eagle wiggled nervously on its throne and continued to watch in silence. Bubo was a very wise owl and served him for many years. He always was advising him so well and he liked Buba for it all. Thanks to him, he managed all the work much faster. In a little while, everyone will be compared and will be able to start. Bubo looked around the courtyard once more, and then once more. When he saw that everything was as it should be, he approached the king and bowed to him that everything was ready. The Eagle responded to his bow, knowing that everything was ready and the audiences could begin. First in line was a small lark. Such a small and easily overlooked bird, you will hardly notice it, but when it starts to sing, your heart seems to jump with joy, the Eagle thought. “So, what brings you here,” Bubo asked. “What ails you? Why you honored me with your visit today,” the Eagle encouraged. The lark looked at Bubo, then looked carefully at the Eagle, bowed deeply, and began. And the Eagle listened, was here from this reason. Minute by minute passed and then they were replaced by hours, but the crowd of birds did not seem to decrease.

When the sun was almost about to say goodbye to the day, there was not a single bird left in the courtyard who wanted to talk to his king. The Eagle took a breath and said to Bubo, “Well, Bubo, we think we’ve done for today.” Bubo looked around once more, and when he saw no one, he closed his notes, turned slowly, and left calmly. The Eagle sat on its throne for a moment, watching the sunset. When he saw another bird in the far corner. He was quite tiny. He had a blue-black beak and a white scarf. The eagle straightened up and said out loud, “What can I do for you, my little friend?” The Sparrow just stood there for a fow moments, was whole nervous, but not afraid to speak. “Actually, nothing, I don’t need anything, oh uh….”, the Sparrow was looking for the right title, and then it occurred to him to just only say Mr. Eagle”. “So, Mr Eagle,” Eagle with a smile replied. “Don’t you know who I am?” The Eagle asked. “And you know my lord, you know who I am,” Sparrow asked instead of answering. The Eagle did not expect this, after all, everyone knew who he was and had special respect for him. None of them would dare say such a thing, and yet the little one … “Aren’t you a little so rude?”
“Why should I be rude, that I asked you if you know who I am? What’s so cheeky about it? Just because you’re the king? That’s why you don’t need to know who your subjects are? All long day I watch as one bird after another asks you for advice and help. They call you king and worship you, but do you know their names? Do you know who they really are and do you really know what bothers them?“ The eagle thought because the little cheeky was probably right, and then he spoke out loud. “Maybe you’re right, maybe I don’t really know the names of all my subjects, maybe not even their real suffering as well as their joys. But I’m king, I don’t have to know it all.”
“You know, when I was very small, I thought the king knew everything and knew everyone. I believed that the king was the wisest and kindest creature in the world, and I really wanted to know him. That noble eagle king. I trained to fly every day so that when I grew up I could fly this far. Every day … but as I see it, I’m wrong.”
“You’re still a small Sparrow,” said the Eagle, and began to smile. The little one was quite amusing him. “Because I didn’t grow up anymore, I don’t know why, but it’s true. Why bother. After all, we only live for a while, too short and it doesn’t make sense, to deal with things, which we can’t change anyway.”
The Eagle thought deeply, liking the sparrow’s strange audacity. He was actually right, he was smaller than others of his kind, but why bother, just like he said. Then he slowly raised his head and walked toward him to get a better look. The Sparrow was a little startled in his heart, he didn’t expect it, after all, the Eagle was actually leaving. He froze for a moment, but didn’t jump, didn’t take a step back, just straightened up a lot to look a little bigger than he really was. There was a strange look on him. The Eagle was about 100 times bigger than him. Still, the little one wasn’t afraid of him. That’s what the Eagle was appreciating. When he reached him slowly so as not to frighten him, he bent down over him. Then he quietly answered. “You know Sparrow, not even the King himself can know everything and know everyone. Now excuse me, I have to rest, it has been a long and difficult day.” He turned how as only slowly as he could and began to walk back to the garden. Not because he wanted to keep his grandeur and virtue, but because he didn’t want to scare the little one.
The next day, the Eagle King hurried through the garden to his throne in the courtyard, but this time perhaps for the first time he was looking forward to it. He really wished the little one was there. That’s because of him, he woke up early this morning. Even though he listened carefully and gave advice throughout the whole long day, he kept trying to find Sparrow. Even Bubo was slightly shocked at how quickly and enthusiastically the king was working today, but he did not comment it. As the day slowly began to say goodbye, all audiences with the King were settled. However, the Eagle did not see the Sparrow during the whole day, so he was sad. Already, he wanted to leave. When suddenly a thin voice whispered from the far end of the courtyard. “Here I am.” The king looked up and stared back where the darkest corner was. But he saw nothing. Only his heart was starting pounded, as if to tell him who was hiding there. He took off quickly to get across the courtyard as quickly as he could into the dark corner. And lo and behold, he was here. “I was afraid I wouldn’t see you today. But what are you doing here? Why are you hiding here? Why…. ”Suddenly the Eagle paused, the little one looking quite exhausted. He took a breath and then just added, “What happened?”
“Nothing happened,” replied proudly Sparrow
“You’re mad at me,” said Eagle.
“I am not angry, what would i be angry about. I had a job all day. I had to find food and drink, and then too. ”The Sparrow paused, then quickly added,“ just everything what’s need to live. It’s not as easy as it looks. When you are just a little sparrow, you have a lot of enemies who love you to death and would like to have you for lunch or snack. And then standing in the hot sun all day doesn’t do me any good.”
“If you’re still hungry, I can catch a little hare for you,” said the Eagle. The “little hare,” with round eyes, Sparrow looked at the Eagle. “Little hare, no? Don’t you like hares? ”Eagle was asking in astonishment. “Even a small mouse is bigger than me,” stared in horror Sparrow. “Well, you’d have him for more days,” the Eagle didn’t let go. “I am your king and I want to help you, and you refuse my help.”
“I don’t refuse, I just don’t eat neither hares nor mice, even if they’re very, really very tiny,” Sparrow whispered sadly.
The Eagle was surprised and did not understand what Sparrow was trying to explain. He understood why he didn’t want a mouse, he doesn’t have so happy when he has it on his menu either, but a hare? Everyone loves hares, especially when they are young and have tender meat. But he kept his thoughts to himself and just asked. “So what are you eating?”
“Even don’t you know?” was asking sadly Sparrow. “No, even I don’t know, I’m probably a bad king,” Eagle replied. “I eat a lot of things, seeds from fields and meadows, sometimes beetles or worms and sometimes also a little earthworm, I especially like it.”
“Oh, earthworms,” the Eagle muttered under his beak………., how are actually hunted the earthworms, I’ve never hunted them, but the earthworm is like a snake, the Eagle thought, and then it occurred to him. “I’ll catch a snake, it’s just a bigger earthworm. What do you say? ”The Eagle shouted excitedly, glad that he would finally do something good for the little one.
“So snake, do you even know that the snake is my main enemy?”
“What did you do to him?”
“I? He’s the one who added me to his menu, he’s who hunting me for snacks. “
“After all you’re small, you have feathers and a beak.”
“He obviously doesn’t mind.”
The Eagle was completely taken aback by the conversation. But Sparrow was already leaving. “Wait,” the Eagle called after him. “I won’t wait,” Sparrow snapped and flew away.
The Eagle continued to stand quiet and motionless there. Then he turned and shouted. “Bubo, I need books, I need to know what sparrows eat.”
The next day, after an almost waking night spent in the library studying the sparrows, the Eagle slowly crept through the garden, and the Sparrow appeared in front of him. He was so deeply immersed in his mind that he overlooked him and almost stepped on it. The Sparrow barely just jump aside. “You almost stepped on me,” Sparrow whistled. “I’m sorry, I didn’t want that. I’m too tired. I studied all night to learn more.”
“Why? Why did you read about me in books? Why didn’t you ask me instead?”
“You see, I didn’t think of that. I’m sorry, I have a job, but please rest in my garden.” The Eagle turned and ran out of the gates of his so cosy garden, where he liked to spend every spare moment when he had to reign on Bird Mountain. But soon only his head appeared in the gate again.” Sparrow, will we see you again tonight?
The Sparrow just was taking a bath in the fountain, “Yes, you will see.”
………………………..
And so the Eagle king fell in love with little Sparrow. He spent every spare moment with him and his conversations. But even the Sparrow loved his Eagle king, but a little differently than everyone else. He was happy to spend secret moments in the gardens with him. What about the fact that he has to wait for days before the Eagle finds time for him. What about the fact that he wasn’t allowed to tell anyone about his secret. What about the fact that the Eagle often didn’t understand him and had to tell him everything over and over again. To love those conversations, even as it became harder and harder to explain with each passing day, even if he had told him the matter several times, he didn’t seem to remember. He always shrugged, trying to explain with an apologetic expression that as a king he just had too much to remember everything about him. He loved watching his Eagle king how spread his wings in the sunshine and let himself be bound by height. It was a very beautiful sight. And so the days on Bird Mountain passed on and on. Only one day did the little Sparrow have to head back to the ground. He didn’t mind the cold, he was used to it, but he was afraid when will the first winter winds came and with them the snow and frost. He knew it would be too late for him and he can’t make it home. Enough that he didn’t make a winter supply in the fall and didn’t build a nest where he could survive this unfriendly time. He loved his king too much to give up the idea that he wouldn’t see him for so long, and the Eagle kept telling him that not a day could do without him and that on earth he wouldn’t be able to visit him because would he did not escape the attention of others, and he is king.

And when one of the last days of autumn came and none of the little birds stayed on the bird mountain anymore. He, too, had to make a decision, if he only stayed only one another day, then he would never have to see the ground again. He would probably never see the arrival of spring again and would not feel the gentle tingling of the first spring grass on his feet.

In the gardens, he saw the Eagle staring sadly into the landscape. He approached him quietly like never before, looked at him sadly, and then said out loud, “I have to go.” The Eagle didn’t even look at him and just added quietly, “I know.” Sparrow turned and wanted to walk away. When he heard Eagle’s plea again, “Perhaps you could stay another day, winter is still so far away. We could spend the whole day here in the gardens and talk like so many times before. What does it matter, about one day more or less, especially when will we be together?“ The Sparrow stopped and just beeped softly, “If I stay a day longer, I won’t be able to return to the ground.”
“Why not,” said the Eagle.
“Because I’d be frozen on the way. I spent all your free time with you, every time you made time for me, I was here for you. So I didn’t have time to manage neither stock up for the winter nor house to survive it. If I stayed one day longer and couldn’t fly to the ground anymore, I would just freeze on the way. “

The Eagle stared blankly at the Sparrow, why he was telling him right now, he thought, but said nothing aloud. Then he thought again and replied with a sympathetic expression, “You know how little time we have before we have to go back to earth, and you’re talking about so …….”
“About what?”
“About such petty things, after all, winter is only one part of the year, yes I know, it’s less pleasant, there’s less food and it’s colder. But if it snows, it’s better to see and it’s easier to hunt what you need it. Yes, we can definite this part of the year more unpleasant for part of the bird kingdom, but… “
“One part of the year?” Sparrow snapped angrily. “Do you even know what such a part of the year means for sparrows? My food is down there, not in the snow, but deep down hidden under it and I can’t get to it. And even if I miraculously succeed in the end, the ground is frozen to the bone and I just can’t get any food out of it. You know, we spent all summer and fall together talking and talking about everything. I told you for hours what was important to me, but you never listened to me, you know almost nothing about me. I thought you love me, ‘
“I love you, I love you with all my heart,” cried the Eagle in horror.
“Maybe, but I have little of your love, so little. I’m the last in line for you, the way it was when we first met. You bound my wings here on that bird mountain and nailed me… “I will never see my world again”, added in a calm voice Sparrow.

On the ground, white snow is slowly starting to fall to the ground. It was the last time, they knew it. In a way, both of them hurt their hearts. But neither of them said anything at the time.

And above a quiet morning, he spread his wings and flew away the Eagle king.

(05/2022)