Story: The Plant That Grows in Trees

Birds have been around since the beginning of time. They collect all of the seeds and berries throughout the year so they have enough food to last them in the winter. It is rumored that when a bird is little, its mom teaches the skills the bird needs to survive. There was one bird who had a bit of a different story though. This bird, named Nate, did not have a mom. In fact, he did not have any family at all. His egg fell from the tree before he was born, so his mother assumed he died. Nate was raised by a few different birds who happened to see him along their way.

He eventually grew up to witness his first winter. White stuff was falling like crazy from the sky, but when Nate realized he was hungry, he could not find food anywhere. He hid up at the top of the tree to get a better look at where some food may be.  After a few hours, he noticed a few birds gathering around a bush not to far away. Nate figured it could not hurt to see what all of the commotion was. Suddenly, birds from every corner were swooping in to see this plant. Nate flew faster to get to it. When he arrived, he noticed that it was a small green plant in the middle of winter. Everything else around it was brown and dead. The white berries on the plant were huge and it definitely had enough to feed all of the birds for a while.  So Nate decided to be brave and try a berry. He was amazed! But the plant started to talk to him. “Please eat as much as you want! I am slowly dying because of the birds. I am so sorry if I am not here tomorrow.” Nate was shocked! Usually when the plants talked they were rude and said to get away. This one was kind and giving up his entire life! Nate watched the plant get swarmed by birds who are not prepared for the winter. For hours he watched thousands of birds peck off a berry and be on their merry way. Suddenly, Nate had a great idea. “What if we move you up to the trees? We can hide you there. People will still be able to eat from your plant, but you will not die because of the tree! You will be sheltered from the cold and snow, but also can use the trees water.”

The plant seemed hesitant. He thought about it for a little bit and then decided it was worth a shot. He already knew he was going to die if he stayed here, so why not try. Nate picked up part of the plant and put him on a tree. He pecked out part of a branch so the roots of the plant were wrapped around the trees branch. It worked! The plant, now called mistletoe, is around on many trees!

Author's Note:
The original story talks about a thunderbird during the winter who decides to bring the dying mistletoe up to the tree. I wanted to keep that same theme but give the bird more of a personality and make the story more vivid.

Bibliography: When the Storm God Rides: Tejas and Other Indians Legends; link to the online reading. 

Image: Bird from Wikipedia.