Woody the Strange Woodpecker’s Prayer
Website design By BotEap.comOwls raised Woody. So goes the story. Many, many springs ago, an egg fell on a squirrel. Sensing a wriggling snake inching towards him, the squirrel grabbed the egg and ran with it towards Bertie the Owl. “Bertie, this egg just fell on my back. It jumped out of some bushes and I was quick enough to rescue it from that horrible snake.” Bertie agreed to raise the egg as his own and soon after Woody was born.
Website design By BotEap.comMost owls perch quietly on tree branches. They pull from the neck to the shoulders and are difficult to see because many have the same colors as tree branches. If you see one during the day, most of the time it is asleep. Woody was considered very rare. He grew up among owls. He wasn’t your normal jolly woodpecker. As a result, rabbits, squirrels, monkeys, and turtles all referred to Woody as “Weird Woody”. While most of the woodpeckers attended bird meetings organized by groups worried about the disappearance of the forest, Woody was always helping the weak newborn chicks. Woody had a red spot on his very long beak and white circles around both eyes. I guess you could say some of Bertie’s owl traits rubbed off on him. He looked like an owl. He went looking for worms and took care of the children while the mothers looked for food. Woody swore that as long as he lived he would dedicate his life to saving birds from crawling snakes and lizards.
Website design By BotEap.comLast spring, some men with heavy machines began to cut down the trees in the forest. They did that all spring through summer. Woody found it hard to sleep because he usually sleeps during the day and stays up at night warning the new chicks and their mothers of impending danger. Men with long fire sticks that made loud noises (called pistols) began shooting rabbits and deer so that the snakes began to climb trees in search of food. Woody noticed them and decided to implement a new plan to protect the birds’ eggs and their chicks.
Website design By BotEap.comEvery day, Woody was busy making hollow houses out of tall tree trunks. He liked coconut trees because his branches were always on top. That caused great difficulty for the snakes originally, but something very strange happened. The lizards were also determined to find the eggs. As they began to climb for bird eggs, Woody looked for larger birds, which in turn ate the lizards. The few remaining rabbits and squirrels cheered each time a large bird caught a lizard.
Website design By BotEap.comSomehow the snakes thought they would be too big for the average bird to interfere. More snakes had the added advantage of being able to hunt at night. Woody had a problem. He couldn’t ask the hawks to come to his aid because the hawks might eat him. So he thought and thought and thought. Woody decided to pray and ask God for an idea. There was Woody on his knees every day with his wings raised to the sky asking God to give him wisdom to protect the weak birds.
Website design By BotEap.comThis was Woody’s prayer:
Website design By BotEap.comDEAR GOD, WHO MAKES TREES BEAUTIFUL,
Who teaches the birds to sing?
it is you who makes the moon and stars shine,
I know I’m just a little woodpecker
But I want to ask you this little thing.
Could you get your big ears close to mine?
I don’t want the snakes to hear this sentence.
Please, my God, give me an idea.
To save the chicks from despair.
Suddenly, Woody began to flap his wings excitedly: I GOT IT, I GOT IT AND IT FLOWED. Website design By BotEap.comSoon it became impossible to sleep in the forest. The great machines groaned all day. During the night, Woody’s beak imitated the sound of the machines or his beak became one of those machines. BRRRRRRRRRRRZZZZZZZZ Woody stayed up all night. He dug and hollowed out holes in all the big coconut trees, big trees with spikes and thorns, baobabs and silk cotton trees too… Website design By BotEap.comSuddenly there was silence. No more hollow woody trees. She helped the finches, the sparrows and the pigeons. She found safe and secure homes for them. He even volunteered to babysit for many. Then one night there was a loud scream: GGGGGGGGRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAH. It was Snotty the garden snake. Snotty was looking pretty skinny lately. When the animals jumped over the other side of the creek (channel made by men and their machines) to see what was going on, there was Snotty with blood coming out of his eyes crashing into the trees. The noise attracted a huge eagle. The eagle picked and picked at Snotty until he was able to tear her into little pieces to feed his young. Every night, a different snake met the same fate. Apparently Woody had a wise idea when he prayed. He cut long spikes from the cactus trees and hid them inside the hollow branches. When the snakes peeked out, Woody poked them in the eyes. Website design By BotEap.comSince that day, most snakes have basic or limited vision and focus by moving the lens of the eyes back and forth like a camera. They see better at night and use their sense of smell to find food. Some species, such as vine snakes, pythons, and garter snakes, now roll their eyes when searching for food. As a result of Woody’s prayer, I think some snakes have been severely punished. Those are permanently blind; they dig in the mud for worms and burrow into the ground. Website design By BotEap.comMoral of the story: you can’t be too small to help someone. Instead of getting into trouble after school, ask your parents if you can help an old lady or a man who lives alone. Homework can be as simple as fetching their newspaper, picking up their groceries, or reading a scripture to them. When you help people who can’t help themselves, those things have great spiritual importance. Later in life, when you really need a miracle, just pray like Woody did and watch what happens. Let Woody’s prayer inspire you and protect you from harm. Website design By BotEap.comBasil Hill is a radio co-host and published author. Website design By BotEap.comHis most successful work is mentioned below. To view other articles by Basil C. Hill, click: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Basil_C._Hill.
Who teaches the birds to sing?
it is you who makes the moon and stars shine,
I know I’m just a little woodpecker
But I want to ask you this little thing.
Could you get your big ears close to mine?
I don’t want the snakes to hear this sentence.
Please, my God, give me an idea.
To save the chicks from despair.
Suddenly, Woody began to flap his wings excitedly: I GOT IT, I GOT IT AND IT FLOWED. Website design By BotEap.comSoon it became impossible to sleep in the forest. The great machines groaned all day. During the night, Woody’s beak imitated the sound of the machines or his beak became one of those machines. BRRRRRRRRRRRZZZZZZZZ Woody stayed up all night. He dug and hollowed out holes in all the big coconut trees, big trees with spikes and thorns, baobabs and silk cotton trees too… Website design By BotEap.comSuddenly there was silence. No more hollow woody trees. She helped the finches, the sparrows and the pigeons. She found safe and secure homes for them. He even volunteered to babysit for many. Then one night there was a loud scream: GGGGGGGGRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAH. It was Snotty the garden snake. Snotty was looking pretty skinny lately. When the animals jumped over the other side of the creek (channel made by men and their machines) to see what was going on, there was Snotty with blood coming out of his eyes crashing into the trees. The noise attracted a huge eagle. The eagle picked and picked at Snotty until he was able to tear her into little pieces to feed his young. Every night, a different snake met the same fate. Apparently Woody had a wise idea when he prayed. He cut long spikes from the cactus trees and hid them inside the hollow branches. When the snakes peeked out, Woody poked them in the eyes. Website design By BotEap.comSince that day, most snakes have basic or limited vision and focus by moving the lens of the eyes back and forth like a camera. They see better at night and use their sense of smell to find food. Some species, such as vine snakes, pythons, and garter snakes, now roll their eyes when searching for food. As a result of Woody’s prayer, I think some snakes have been severely punished. Those are permanently blind; they dig in the mud for worms and burrow into the ground. Website design By BotEap.comMoral of the story: you can’t be too small to help someone. Instead of getting into trouble after school, ask your parents if you can help an old lady or a man who lives alone. Homework can be as simple as fetching their newspaper, picking up their groceries, or reading a scripture to them. When you help people who can’t help themselves, those things have great spiritual importance. Later in life, when you really need a miracle, just pray like Woody did and watch what happens. Let Woody’s prayer inspire you and protect you from harm. Website design By BotEap.comBasil Hill is a radio co-host and published author. Website design By BotEap.comHis most successful work is mentioned below. To view other articles by Basil C. Hill, click: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Basil_C._Hill.