Story

An older couple lived by a stream, with their young daughter, a bright joy. She watched the silver fish in the stream, the blue birds in the sky, the red flowers in the fields, and laughed at the rainbows and pink clouds above.

Until one day the sky heaved, and the wind beat the earth, and a black mass of tiny demons swept over the little family, and swept up the tiny child, and took her off. The couple watched her disappear, helpless to her plight, until she vanished completely far up and away. Not knowing what to do, with hearts of lead, they sat down on a bench in the meadow, held hands and wept in a world without color.

They wept and wept, day after day, until their tears formed a pond. Far above an eagle watched curiously. Until the pond became a lake, salty and dead, since no fish from the streams could live in salty water. The eagle, who loved cod and herring, had an idea.

One day, as they sat weeping, they heard a splash, which startled them enough to look up. Above them, an eagle wheeled away. A little while later, he came back, with a fish held gently in his talons, and splash, the fish fell into the water. Something about the bird, and the timing of the flop caused them to laugh. For the first time since their daughter vanished, they stopped crying.

Next day, more large birds brought more ocean fish, until the couple figured they could catch one and have dinner. Slowly, the fish thrived, and the eagle would circle above them, or perch on their roof, listening to them talk quietly of their loss. The eagle thought and thought, as he soared, until one day, he saw a small, starving child sleeping by a river. The eagle swept down, and gently wrapped his talons around the child, and flew hard, carrying him along to his lake and the couple. Then he caught one of the fish in the lake, and enjoyed his dinner by his own calm sea.

In the morning, the woman found the child asleep on the porch, and took him in. On that day, the color began to return, the stream began to brighten, and the roses bloomed a pale pink, the birds seemed a light shade of blue. The man even whistled at his chores, now and then.

Over the years, the boy, although always solemn and a bit thin, became a good kind man, with a sweet cheerful wife, who took kind care of the now old couple, and a small granddaughter who watched the silver fish in the stream, the emerald fish in the lake, the blue birds in the sky, the red flowers in the fields, and laughed at the rainbows and pink clouds above. And never wondered why so many eagles loved to circle the strangely salty lake near her home.