Long ago, when the world was new, all the birds were naked and cold in the winter. One day they all get together and ask the Moon for advice. Touched by their predicament, the Moon tells them that the next day at dawn they should rub against the plants and flowers, and they will be clothed. That is how Parrot got feathers the color of tulips, Flamingo became pink like the cherry blossoms, and Duck got a head the color of grass.
Unfortunately, Peacock was sound asleep under a pile of leaves in a cave when all this was happening. When he comes out and the others see he is still naked, they decide to give him some of their feathers. Then Moon surrounds him with a mysterious light and he emerges with the beautiful fan tail the Peacock is known for today.
This children's picture book with vibrant illustrations by Helen Cann was written by Jacqueline Jules, author of the Never Say a Mean Word Again, one of S&P's choices for "Best Spiritual Children's Books of 2014." The author includes some "Fun Facts about Peacocks" at the back of the book, including these:
"The peacock is the national bird of India and appears in Hindu mythology. The Yazidi people of Iraq honor a deity called 'The Peacock Angel.' In Greek myth, the eyespots in a peacock's feathers are associated with Zeus' wife, Hera. She is said to have taken one hundred eyes from a creature named Argus and put them into the tail of her favorite bird, the peacock. Christians consider the peacock a symbol of immortality."
Jules' original tale has many of the qualities of a traditional myth about how things came to be as they are. Children and adults will recognize its simple and laudable moral: True friends are generous and kind.
