The Falcon and the Doves
Once upon a time, deep within a lush oak forest, there stood a magnificent nest where white-winged doves lived in peace. These charming birds glided through the blue sky all day long, and in the evenings they chirped merrily on their wooden perches. But the ravenous kites that patrolled the nearby mountains cast a shadow now and then over this pure happiness and spread fear. The peaceful doves grew exhausted from staying on guard at every beat of their wings and from hiding without end. It was in those very anxious days that a cunning and majestic hawk alighted near the nest with a silver-coloured glide. The hawk addressed the assembly of the doves, lending his voice a soft and reassuring tone. "Why do you let these delicate wings tremble with fear and spend a whole life under the threat of the kites?" he asked.
The old leader of the doves, with a deep worry in his eyes, bowed his head helplessly. The cunning hawk did not let the chance slip and went on with his deceitful words in a persuasive manner. "Crown me as your sovereign; with my skilled talons I shall protect you from every outside danger for ever." The innocent doves failed to show the prudence to weigh the hidden intentions behind this tempting offer. In a false longing for peace they proclaimed the ravenous hawk their king and swore him unconditional obedience. But no sooner had the hawk settled on the throne than he lost no time in revealing his true face. The next morning he took the plumpest dove of the flock he claimed to protect in his merciless talons and ate it with relish.
On each of the following days another wretched dove fell victim to the hawk's insatiable appetite. The doves were seized with deep regret before this cruel sovereign, far more merciless than the kites, their old enemies. The few birds that remained, finding no place to flee from the cruel sovereign's talons, faced a bitter truth. Late though it was, they understood that taking shelter with a cruel protector in order to escape a danger is the greatest of ruins. As they struggled helplessly, nothing was left for them but to weep over the disaster they had chosen with their own hands. Souls whose eyes are blinded by fear are doomed to lose their freedom and their lives in false refuges. Out of the frying pan into the fire.