A New King for the Birds

Once upon a time, very long ago,
the birds of a forest, were ruled by The Hornbill.
He had proclaimed himself,
the king without anybody's consent
He was cruel and
unfair ruler.
He was short-tempered and got angry very soon.
Innocent birds would get scolding from him
without any reason.
The birds did not like him.
And wanted to choose a new king.
One day they called a secret meeting of all the birds.
The birds had chosen a tree,
quite far from the forest,
so that
The Hornbill would not know anything
about the meeting.
The agenda of the meeting
was to choose a new ruler for them.
Many names were suggested for the new King,
and at last,
Bulbul was chosen to be their King.
All the birds agreed to make Bulbul their King,
as she was kind and gentle.
She humbly accepted the offer.
However, there was one problem before them.
How to tell the Hornbill that he was being dethroned?
Whoever went to him with the news would be killed.
Don't worry about this problem.
I have made a plan.
To carry out my plan,
I will need the help of our friend,
The Woodpecker.
If you all trust me, let me try out.
All the birds accepted his offer.
The Woodpecker agreed to help him.
He took the woodpecker to a tree.
Remain hidden.
And cut the branch.
Start pecking at it,
just when one blow is needed for the branch to fall.
After instructing The Woodpecker, flew to The Hornbill.
The Hornbill was just wondering,
where all the birds had gone.
seeing The Owl he said,
Where have all the birds gone today?
There is nobody to attend upon me.
Your highness,
all the birds feel that, you should prove your capabilities.
We have decided to hold a branch pricking competition.
if you succeed in breaking the branch,
We will know your strength and power.
However,
if you do not succeed, and some of the bird succeeds,
he or she will be chosen our king.
The Hornbill was proud of his potentials.
He said,
I am strong enough to break a branch .
Take me to the venue of the competition.
And I shall break the strongest of the branch.
Yes your Majesty.
The Owl guided him to the tree where he had hidden the woodpecker.
All the birds the forest were also present there.
The Owl selected a strong branch of the tree,
and said to The Hornbill.
Your Highness,
This is the branch you have to break.
The horn Bill was so sure of his success.
He at once started pecking at the Branch.
He tried for a long time,
but could not drink even a portion of the branch.
Soon he grew tired.
The Owl said,
your highness, the stipulated time is over.
You could not break the branch.
The next participant is the Bulbul.
If she succeeds in breaking the branch ,she becomes our king.
When I could not break the branch,
how can such a delicate looking bird break it?
The Owl led Bulbul to the branch
that had already been cut by The Woodpecker.
Only a last blow was needed to break it.
The Bulbul had to peck at it only twice,
and the branch broke and fell to the ground.
Everybody cried out with happiness,
and cheered The Bulbul and proclaimed her their king.
The Hornbill was so ashamed of himself,
that he flew away from the forest and never showed his face again.
The gentle and kind Bulbul,
thanked all the birds for making her their king.
She specially thanked The Owl,
and The Woodpecker.
She justly ruled over the birds.
The birds were happy to have such a kind and gentle King.
Dear Children.
Did you understand where the fault lies ?
Never be proud of yourself.
If you be proud,
nobody will like you,
and that certainly leads only to your downfall.
So the moral of the story is,
Pride leads to downfall.