The Story of Jaymunda

Once upon a time, in a land never heard or spoken of, there lived a purple bird. This bird would glide over mountains and valleys, soaring through the open skies. Legend told that this bird had the most melodic song, but no one had ever seen the bird, and no one had ever heard him sing. One day, the purple bird was gliding through the trees when he heard a sound he had never heard before. As he looked down, the bird saw something moving in the brush. It was a little girl sobbing. She had become lost while gathering fruit and was now miles from home.

The purple bird knew the bitter cold of darkness would soon take over the daylight, and the little girl wouldn’t be able to survive through the night. He flew down to the small child and began to chirp softly. The girl glanced at the bird, but took little notice. The bird chirped a little louder, and still no response from the child. Now, wanting desperately to be heard, the bird hopped onto a small branch, fluffed his wings, and let out the most melodic song he could proclaim.

The girl finally looked up. The bird was changing color. Slowly, his feathers began to turn a brilliant red. Now, so red and shining that he looked like a glimmering light, the bird flew away. The child, forgetting her tears, ran to find the bird; and it soon became a game of hide-and-seek. She could hear the bird’s beautiful melody through the trees, but every time she saw a glimpse of the red feathers, the bird would fly away again. The small child’s laughter filled the forest as she called out “Jaymunda! Jaymunda!”, which is known only as “the bird has spoken.” Suddenly, the bird stopped singing.

Worried that her forest friend had left her forever, she listened intently. Her parents, who had been searching the woods for their daughter, heard her call out “Jaymunda! Jaymunda!”, and ran to find her standing beside an old oak tree looking up at the sky, rubbing a bright red feather softly between her fingertips. Her mother called to the little girl. The girl, hearing her mother’s voice, turned and ran to greet her parents.

She looked up into her father’s eyes and said, “Look papa, look at this feather my bird gave me.” 
Her father’s eyes became wide and he exclaimed, “You can see?! You can see this feather?”
“Why of course, papa… Can’t you?” the little girl replied.“Our daughter can finally see!” exclaimed her mother. The family was ecstatic as they walked home. And although the little girl never would never hear the music of the purple bird again, she dreamt in brilliant colors.