Murder in the Coop - Pt. 2

I had just finished my evening prayers and was relaxing in the garden.  It was about a week after the "murder" incident in the coop and I was glad to see that things had returned to normal there.  Then suddenly, Mei swooped down and landed at my feet.

"Vege Cat, I've got news for you," she gasped breathlessly.

This part of the story is told by Mei

"Well, I was flying back to the temple after watching the sunset and was passing through the forest nearby.  Suddenly I heard a terrible noise from down below and I paused on a branch of a tree to find out what was going on.  I saw to my horror that a wild dog was fighting fiercely with a hen, probably wanting to catch it for his dinner.  When I looked closer, I saw that the hen was Ms. Brown!  After her exile from the coop, she must have been wandering around in the forest.  She was fighting hard to save herself but it looked like she was losing the battle.  I felt I had to do something, so I flew down and attacked the dog.  He was taken by surprise and after putting up a fight, he gave up and ran off.

Ms. Brown was lying on the ground, panting, eyes closed, blood oozing from her dog bites.  I dashed to the nearby stream and brought some water for her.  I put it in her mouth and after a while, she opened her eyes.  When she saw me, a look of surprise came over her face.  Then she muttered, "Why are you helping a criminal? Go away!"

"Ms. Brown, what's past is past," I said.  "You have very serious wounds from your fight with the dog.  You've got to get them treated immediately.  I know a place where you can get help.  Just climb on my back and I will fly you there."

"Just leave me here to die," she mumbled  and remained motionless.  

"I'm not going to let you die, come on, get up on my back," I urged her.  Finally she dragged herself up and climbed onto my back.  I told her I was taking her to a small farm not far away and it would take about 15 minutes.  The owner of the farm, an old man called Chen is a good friend of mine, he keeps chickens and ducks not to sell in the market but as his pets.  He would know how to treat her wounds.  On the way, I had to make a few stops to rest as Ms. Brown was quite heavy to carry but finally we made it to the farm safely.  

Farmer Chen took her inside, checked her wounds, treated them and gave her a big box to rest in.  Then he drew me aside and said gravely, "Your friend's wounds are very bad and she has lost a lot of blood.  I'm afraid she may not be able to make it."

I thanked him for his trouble and said I would come back the next day to check on her.

So here I am, I'm exhausted and I need to take a rest."

"Mei, you did the right thing, God bless you, and I will pray for Ms. Brown's recovery."  I said.

I couldn't tell Head Nun what had happened as she had gone to town to see a relative and would not be back until the next morning, and since it was getting late, I thought I would only tell Bruce Lee the next day.  

Mei left for the farm early in the morning and didn't come back until about two hours later.  

"I have bad news, Vege Cat," she said.  "Ms. Brown died last night from her wounds."

"Oh, no," I said.  "I was hoping she would recover.  I shall have to tell Bruce Lee and the others. Thanks, Mei for all you have done.  Do get some rest now."

I found Bruce Lee.and Turkey Lurkey (TL) standing outside the coop when I went there and I told them the sad news about Ms. Brown.

Bruce Lee looked rather down and stammered, "It's all my fault!  I shouldn't have kicked her out of the coop and sent her away ....."

"No, no," said TL. "It's not your fault.  Ms. Brown committed a crime and she had to be punished.  In fact, you were very lenient.  If you had sent her to the PBB (Prison for Bad Birds), she would have had a very hard life.  Instead, you gave her her freedom.  Unfortunately she met a wild dog.  It was her fate to die at his hands.  Let's say a prayer for her after dinner tonight, what say you?"

That evening, Bruce Lee and TL asked me to join them in their prayers for Ms. Brown.  They requested me to recite a few mantras and after about 15 minutes, we ended the prayers.  The hens and roosters though they did not really like Ms. Brown, were sorry over the incident and everyone went to bed early.  TL asked me to stay on with him and Bruce Lee as they could not sleep so early, so we sat for a while chatting about this and that until one by one, we nodded off. 

It must be well past midnight when I felt someone shaking my shoulder.  It was Bruce Lee.

"Do you see what I see?" he whispered.  I looked in the direction he indicated and saw to my shock that it was .....Ms. Brown!  She was perched on a rafter of the coop's roof and was looking down at the sleeping hens and roosters. 

TL had also woken up.

"I thought you said she's dead," he whispered.

As we watched, Ms. Brown started speaking, her voice trembling and tears falling from her eyes.  

"My dear friends," she said.  "I just want to say how sorry I am for the trouble I caused.  All these years at the coop, even though I treated you all badly, yet you tolerated me.  I deserve a tragic end, it is just punishment for all my bad deeds.  Before I go, I want to ask you all to forgive me, especially you, Ms. Penny.  Goodbye and may you all be well, happy and at peace always."

Then we saw with horror a huge black cloud suddenly appear, it enveloped her and swept her away!

The three of us couldn't speak for a while, quite shaken by what we had just seen. All the hens and roosters were still sleeping and quite unaware of what had happened.

"Was that her g-ghost?" whispered Bruce Lee nervously as he had never seen a ghost hen before.  "And what the hell was that thing that took her away?"

Both TL and I couldn't find the words to answer him.

When I told Head Nun what had happened, goose pimples still ran up and down my spine.  Bruce Lee thought it best not to tell his hens and roosters what we saw that night as he said they would never believe him.  For him, it was an experience he would always remember.

Rest in peace, Ms. Brown, may you be happy wherever you are.

Cat Wisdom

 

Wise Words

 

With Metta,

Da

Murder in the Coop - Pt. 1

It all began when we heard a commotion in the coop.  Head Nun, always concerned for her family of feathered friends, went to investigate and I followed her.

Bruce Lee was jumping up and down outside the coop when we arrived.  

"A rooster is dead - someone killed him," he screamed, flapping his wings.

"What?" gasped Head Nun.  

"Well, nobody knows exactly what happened - I shall have to investigate!" replied Bruce Lee tersely.

Head Nun groaned, then said to me, "Vege Cat, I'm too old for this kind of drama.  You look into this and report back to me."

"Ok, Head Nun," I said.  "Don't worry, we'll find out what happened."

Bruce Lee led me to the scene of the crime.  I saw that two hens were standing over the dead body of a rooster.  One of them was a white hen popularly known as Ms. Penny and the other, a brown hen called Ms. Brown who, I had heard earlier, was disliked by most of the hens.  She had often picked trouble with them over petty things and was selfish, arrogant and just plain nasty.

Ms. Penny was weeping frantically and Ms. Brown was standing over her accusing her of killing Mr.R. (the rooster).o

"I did not kill him," protested poor Ms. Penny.  

"Alright, please calm down, tell us what happened," I said to Ms. Penny.

"Well, early this morning, Mr. R. dragged me out of the coop and tried to seduce me, I rejected him and we had a fight.  In the struggle, he fell and accidentally knocked his head against a rock.  I didn't kill him!"

"She's lying," shouted Ms. Brown.  "She was jealous because Mr. R. had eyes only for me and in her anger, she killed him by hitting him with a stone!"

"That's not true," wailed Ms. Penny.  "You're making it up because Mr. R. didn't want you!  You're the jealous one, not me!"

"Alright, alright," snapped Bruce Lee.  "Let's settle this properly. Someone call Turkey Lurkey (TL), we shall appoint him as the judge of this murder case."

"Look, I have no experience in this sort of thing," TL said to Bruce Lee, who turned a deaf ear to his protests and ordered the three of us to sit together to begin the investigation. Meanwhile the hens and roosters had gathered round to witness the proceedings.

"I did not kill him," protested poor Ms. Penny

I must say TL handled everything quite well despite his claim that he knew nothing about conducting criminal cases.  Before allowing the hens to tell their story, he said, "May I remind both of you, Ms. Penny and Ms. Brown, that perjury is a grave offence.  The punishment is life imprisonment at the Prison for Bad Birds (PBB) or exile from the coop forever, never to return.  As you know, life outside the coop is hard, you will face adversaries in the form of humans and animals who will only be too ready to gobble you up for dinner. So think carefully before you say anything."

He then asked Ms. Penny to tell her side of the story, then Ms. Brown was asked to tell her side of the story.  

"Do both of you have any witnesses?" he asked.  

Ms. Penny started weeping again and shook her head.  Apparently everyone was still fast asleep that morning and didn't  hear anything.  As for Ms. Brown, she couldn't produce a witness either.  Then, suddenly, we heard a flutter of wings and in flew Mei, the white dove that lives in the eaves of the temple roof.  

"I can give evidence that Ms. Penny is telling the truth," she said.  All the hens and roosters started talking at the same time. 

TL clapped his wings together (in the absence of a judge's hammer) and yelled, "Silence!  Let's hear what this bird has to say."

"Well," began Mei.  "I was flying back to the temple early this morning and stopped to rest on the roof of the coop.  I happened to look down and saw Mr. R. drag Ms. Penny outside.  She was fighting hard to defend herself from his amorous advances and in the struggle, he fell and knocked his head on a rock..  That blow killed him, not Ms. Penny."  

A ripple of ooh's and aah's ran through the crowd.  

Ms. Brown, her face ashen, stood silent, unable to speak.  

"Ms. Brown, what do you have to say in the light of this new evidence bearing in mind
you do not have a witness?" asked TL.  "Did you or did you not lie in order to frame Ms. Penny for Mr. R.'s death because you were jealous of her?"

The crowd became unruly again, some shouting "She's guilty!", "Punish her!" and things like that.

TL clapped his wings together again.  "Ms. Brown, do I take your silence to mean that you admit to being guilty of lying?"

Suddenly, Ms. Brown started screaming and tried to rush out of the coop.  The roosters immediately pounced on her and pinned her down.  

"Mercy, I beg for mercy!" she began wailing.  "I didn't mean to do it, please don't send me to the PBB!"

TL looked at Bruce Lee and said, "Well, there's no more to be said.  Ms. Brown is guilty of perjury.  Bruce Lee, you're her boss.  You decide what you want to do with her."

Bruce Lee puffed out his chest, then said, "I am disgusted that this evil hen should be among us.  But since she begged for mercy, I shall be lenient.  She is to be kicked out of the coop immediately and never show her face here again."

"Done!" said TL, clapping his wings.  Ms. Brown was led away by the roosters to be thrown away somewhere far from the coop.

The crowd of hens and roosters dispersed, some congratulated TL on a job well done and I could see many were glad to be rid of Ms. Brown. Ms. Penny was very grateful to Mei for her help and they became fast friends.  Later we gave Mr. R. a decent burial and soon everything quietened down.  

Head Nun was of course relieved that the case was justly solved.  As for Bruce Lee, he gave a stern warning to his roosters to behave themselves otherwise he would take "drastic measures"! 

There's a moral to this story: always remember that Karma is watching you - do good and you will be rewarded, do bad and you suffer the consequences.  So, my friends, be careful!

"Thank you so much, Mei.  You saved my life!"

A Happy Trio

(L-R) Bruce Lee, myself and Turkey Lurkey

This snapshot was taken by Head Nun on an impromptu visit to the coop.  Turkey Lurkey had been keeping a low profile since he joined the coop and prefers to keep to his corner.  He sings softly to himself, even does meditation.  Whatever goes on in the coop - fights, quarrels, etc. - he doesn't get himself involved.  Once Bruce Lee suggested that Head Nun find him a "girlfriend".  The poor fellow was so shocked and upset that he couldn't eat for several days!  He likes his bachelor status and doesn't mind being the odd one out among the hens and roosters.  Maybe Bruce Lee should appoint him as the coop's official "Justice of Peace" to settle whatever disputes that may arise now and then!

May everyone be well, happy and at peace.

With Metta,

Da

When the Going Gets Tough - Pt. 2

I was walking past the coop a few mornings after the incident of the new hens when I saw Bruce Lee sitting in a corner of the compound.  He looked rather dejected and his usually bright red comb seemed less shiny.  When he saw me, he jumped up and called me to stop.

"Hey, Vege Cat, I want talk to you," he said.  He ran up to the fence and looked furtively around before speaking. I wondered why he was behaving so mysteriously and asked, "What's up, Bruce Lee?"

"Ssshhh, they'll hear you," he whispered. "I just want to talk to you privately." 

"Is it about the incident the other day?"  I asked.

He nodded and said.  "Vege Cat, I want to become a monk."

"What?"  I tried to stifle my laughter but couldn't .

"Alright, alright, I know you don't believe me but after all that has happened, I think it's better I start a new life.  Look at you, you're always so cheerful and happy,  I want to be like that.  I've had enough of all those bloody hens inside, they can all go to hell for all I care!"  He snorted and stamped his feet angrily.

"Look, it's all over,"  I said.  "Head Nun has given away the new hens, so what's the problem?"

"Huh! Do you know some of the oldies still refuse to speak to me, others have the audacity to call me names and peck me when I'm asleep!"

He snorted again.  "I was just having some fun.  What's wrong with that? Those two new chicks were really cute."

"Yes, but you forgot the feelings of your old faithful hens who have been with you for so many years."  I said. "Having loved and cared for you all this time, I don't blame them for being jealous.  You could have been more discreet."

Just then, a few hens emerged from the coop and saw us talking.  One of them immediately screamed, "Vege Cat, don't talk to him, he's not only a traitor but an ungrateful wretch!"

Now I was really in trouble.  Being involved in the love affair of Bruce Lee and his hens was the last thing I wanted but it was clear that I had to do something to restore peace in the coop.

"I was just passing through," I said.  "Why are you all so angry?"  

"He's nothing but a sex maniac!  After all we have done for him, he cast us aside like we're rubbish!" said one of the hens angrily.

"Alright, calm down,"  I said.   "Roosters, like the humans, have their weaknesses, they have one or two flings but in the end they go home to their wives. (I didn't know how true that was but I had to say something).  As far as I know, your boss here does love and care for you all and has done everything in his power to protect you all these years.  Do you remember the time when the mad man from the mental home escaped and hid in the coop?  Wasn't Bruce Lee tied up and hung from the ceiling for hours?  He could have dashed out and left you all to die but he didn't.  What about the time when some robber tried to break into the coop and he kept a nightly vigil for your safety?"

"Another thing," I continued, my mind racing for words.  "Don't forget you are all living in Lord Buddha's temple.  The grounds are sacred and there is no room for anger, hatred, jealousy and so on.  As it is, He is probably very sad to see all of you quarrelling and fighting.  Everyone makes  mistakes.  I urge you all to forgive Bruce Lee, forget the past and move on."

The hens became silent, looked at each other, then went back into the coop.  

Bruce Lee looked at me admiringly and said, "Hey, you're better than I thought!  Never knew you could speak like that.  So what now?"

"Well, you've got to do your part too.  Just ask them to forgive you and all will be well."

"Me ask for forgiveness?" he shrieked, his bright red comb nearly popping off his head.

"Either that or you'll be a lonely old bird for the rest of your life," I said.  "Go on, I want to hear you say the words!"

He grumbled and swore under his breath, kicked the fence several times, then reluctantly turned to go inside the coop.  I waited at the door, then I heard him mumble something about being sorry, then suddenly the hens were all singing "For He's a Jolly Good Rooster"!

I sighed with relief.  I guess Bruce Lee will be having a cuddly tete-a-tete with his hens later that evening.

"For he's a jolly good rooster"

Cat Wisdom

When the Going Gets Tough - Pt.1

 

These two beautiful hens were a gift to Head Nun from a devotee whose prayers had been answered.  They were indeed very pretty and Bruce Lee could not take his eyes off them when they arrived to stay at the coop.  Very soon, jealousy among the older hens erupted and resulted in fierce fights.  Head Nun had no choice but to remove the two birds and gave them away to a friend.  Bruce Lee was devastated but couldn't do anything about it.  To make matters worse, the old hens boycotted him for days and we didn't hear his Good Morning calls until they forgave him.  Poor old bird, life can be tough for him sometimes!

Cat Wisdom

Cat Wisdom