He picked up the scissors again, took a deep breath and tried to relax.
“Ok,” he thought. “Let’s give this another go.”
With the material stretched firmly between his fingers and his eyes carefully focused on the mark, the tailor squeezed the scissor handles. And just as the blades sunk into the fabric…
SQUAWK!!!
“Dammit- you bastard!!
It was ruined. The tailor’s critical cut had been jolted awry by the crow’s untimely, startlingly loud, rude and ugly cry. The crow had been a nuisance all morning but this last incident had caused real damage. The tailor would have been better off working inside at his table, but the weather was too beautiful not to soak up, even if it meant cutting fabric outside near the pasture.
Unfazed and unaware, the crow remained on his branch, looking over the tailor and his botched handiwork as rage engulfed the craftsman.
“I’m gonna kick your ass you little son of a bitch!”
Not wanting to lose sight of his prey, the tailor called to his wife, asking her to bring him his bow and arrows.
He grunted a thank you to her, loaded the bow, aimed an arrow straight at the crow, and released the string.
The bird flew off. The arrow sailed high. And a second later, the neighboring farmer screamed with his own rage.
“What the fuck, asshole!”
The neighbor was at the tailor’s fence now, his face as red as the blood- tipped arrow in his hand.
“Shit! Did I hit you?” The tailor was shaking.
“Not me. But my pig is dead. What the hell were you shooting at?”
“I was…. there was a loud crow and I…”
Looking at the tailor’s work table, the neighbor put the rest of the puzzle together on his own.
“You screwed up your work because some bird was pissing you off, so you shot an arrow at it, and killed my pig instead? Jesus Christ…”
The tailor was silent. His carelessness, ill- logic, lack of patience and bad temper had spoken for him. They convicted him of being selfishly wrapped up in his own situation, unaware, and unconcerned about the effects of his actions on others. These are the characteristics of a four year old, yet the tailor was an adult.
He should have known better. He should have controlled his anger. He should have just taken his work inside.
But the tailor had done none of those things, and the innocent paid the price.
——————————————————————-
This is my retelling of a classic Nova Scotian folk song called Old Carrion Crow. During my years as an elementary school music teacher, I used this song to help young students understand that actions have consequences, and that irrational behavior often brings collateral damage. Of course, I did not use the language I used in this post!
But how many times have we been impacted negatively by the ignorant actions of others? How often have our lives been endangered by an aggressive driver, blowing by us at 100mph or zig-zagging around cars on a crowded freeway? How many times have we been the one losing control, putting others in danger?
The American mindset right now seems to be that of the tailor: outsized self- concern coupled with a complete unawareness of others not in their immediate circle. Are we the nation of toddlers we appear to be right now?
This post was inspired by the catbird who hangs out in my backyard- shrieking at me in his ugly voice as I try to relax and my hammock, reading. I admit, I yelled at this bird and even threw a small berry at it- but I didn’t shoot any arrows. For those interested in the Old Carrion Crow song, check out this video- these kids do a nice job!
For my other recent post involving backyard crows, read Asshole Crow.
Follow Todd & the team of writers at Wise & Shine for more stories. You can also visit Todd’s personal blog, Five O’Clock Shadow, or keep up with his music at www.toddfulginiti.com
“A nation of toddlers”. Thank you for making this point so beautifully – with legend, lore and music. An arrow right to the heart of issues we face. And thank you, too, for sharing the beautiful choral performance. I wasn’t familiar with the song, but as someone with Nova Scotian roots, I can imagine ancestors singing along. Beautiful, Todd. 😊
Thanks Vicki! If there’s anything I miss about my old teaching job, it was working with the elementary choir 😎🎶
Was that you leading the group? I couldn’t tell…but if it was bravo! What a happy group of talented kiddos. 🥰🥰🥰
No that wasn’t me- just a video I found on the internet. Sorry for the confusion! 🙃
No worries! Didn’t want to miss an opportunity to praise you! 😉❤️😉
😂 I love your attitude! The world needs more of it 😜 😁 jk
I agree! Wynne and I joke…that we’re ‘no joke’ about the praise and acknowledgment goals. What else are we here for? 🥰😎🥰
😎💚😎
Wow, Todd, I know you are happily retired from teacher but you were a great teacher. I love, “I used this song to help young students understand that actions have consequences, and that irrational behavior often brings collateral damage. ” As you say so well, it seems we all need to be reminded of that! Great story and post, Todd!
Thanks Wynne- I appreciate the kind words! I really enjoyed teaching except for those final few years.
You have a great way of explaining things, the phrase a nation of toddlers is both symbiotic and ironic. Beautiful!
Thanks very much for reading and commenting! 🙂
Anytime
I like the analogy you made between the situation in the US and the story you told. It’s a very interesting perspective and makes things clearer to someone like me who is not American.
Thanks Cristiana- I’m always interested in hearing how the rest of the world views the US and if they are experiencing any similar issues.
Absolutely a parable for our time!
Thanks VJ!
Welcome
Great story and it’s such a wonderful correlation into the mindset of many today! ❤️
Thanks so much for sharing this post! 😊
Thank you for reading Nadine!
You are so welcome, Todd!
Have an amazing day!
Thanks- you too! 🙂
As usual, a strong message mixed with some humour (the swearing 😂++)
A fantastic story that was new to me.
A big smile when I imagined the reader who was disturbed by the catbird and the reaction.
wow, what a damn good chorus. Thank you Todd for Another great reading experience from you.
Thanks very much Parisa- I appreciate your kind words! 🙂 My mom often reads my posts but I’m hoping she’ll miss this one- she won’t appreciate the swearing 😬😁
😁😁😁 What if you say you were just trying to spice up the blog post a bit?
It’s worth a try! 🙂
Ah, the nation, no the world needs to learn these lessons! *sigh!*
Thanks for reading Tamara- I was hoping it wasn’t a worldwide problem 😞😒
What a great fable! And so relevant to these times.
Thanks Gwen! 🙂
Keep up with the good and informative post
Thanks for reading! 🙂
Great message tied up in a lovely story. The poor pig 😕
I don’t think the immature attitude is limited to the states. People can be so self centred and focused that they don’t realise they’re impacting on and hurting others. I could start ranting so I think I’ll stop now 😬
Go ahead and rant- it can be therapeutic! I guess being self-centered is just part of human nature 😒
True.