One day, there was famine in
the land. Eagle had to walk very
far to find food. She came back
very tired.
“There must be an easier way
to travel!” said Eagle.
Panyuma yakulala bulongo,Kyaje wajinga na mulangwe wawama. Wa tampile kutola mayona onse abakwabo ba ng’onyi. “Iyayi twiyatungile pewulu yamayona yetu”, waambile. “Kampe kusakupela kwenda.”
After a good night’s sleep, Hen
had a brilliant idea. She began
collecting the fallen feathers
from all their bird friends.
“Let’s sew them together on top
of our own feathers,” she said.
“Perhaps that will make it easier
to travel.”
Mpungu wowajingatu na nguya mumuji, wa tapijilepo kusona. Wapangile bwapi bwayama nekutumbuka peulu kukila kyaje. Kyaje walombele guya pano wakokele kusona. Washile nguya nakuya mukutekela bana byakuja
Eagle was the only one in the
village with a needle, so she
started sewing first.
She made herself a pair of
beautiful wings and flew high
above Hen.
Hen borrowed the needle but
she soon got tired of sewing.
She left the needle on the
cupboard and went into the
kitchen to prepare food for her
children.
bino ba ng’onyi bamwene mpungu sa abena kutumbuka. Nabo balombeleko nguya mambo begijisheko kusona bwapi. Ponkampo bang’onyi ba tumbukilengatu ponse ponase.
But the other birds had seen
Eagle flying away. They asked
Hen to lend them the needle to
make wings for themselves too.
Soon there were birds flying all
over the sky.
Bino ng’onyi washajijile poabwezhelenga nguya, Kyaje kewajingapo ne. Bana banji basendele nguya na kutampa kukaya nayo. Pobakokele kukaya, bashile nguya muma loba.
When the last bird returned the
borrowed needle, Hen was not
there. So her children took the
needle and started playing with
it.
When they got tired of the
game, they left the needle in
the sand.
Jonkajo juba mabanga, mpungu wabwelele. Walombele nguya wakebelenga kuwamwa mayona anji afumine fumine mukwenda. Kyaje watajile mu kabachi. Wa tajile mu kinzanza. Wa tajile palubanza. Pano nguya keweyitaine ne.
Later that afternoon, Eagle
returned. She asked for the
needle to fix some feathers that
had loosened on her journey.
Hen looked on the cupboard.
She looked in the kitchen. She
looked in the yard. But the
needle was nowhere to be
found.
“Just give me a day,” Hen
begged Eagle. “Then you can
fix your wing and fly away to
get food again.”
“Just one more day,” said Eagle.
“If you can’t find the needle,
you’ll have to give me one of
your chicks as payment.”
Bino Mpungu poabwelele juba jikwabo, wa tayine Kyaje wena kuzokaula panshi, kewajinga na nguya ne. Mpungu wa tombweke panshi lubilo wasenda nemwananji umo. Kufuma popo Mpungu utana Kyaje ubena kuzokaula mumaloba kukeba nguya.
When Eagle came the next day,
she found Hen scratching in the
sand, but no needle.
So Eagle flew down very fast
and caught one of the chicks.
She carried it away.
Forever after that, whenever
Eagle appears, she finds Hen
scratching in the sand for the
needle.
Nge kinvula kwa Mpungu kwapona pashi, Kyaje ubula bana banji. “Fumayi pabula bichi,” ke twibileyane: “Tusakunyema.”
As the shadow of Eagle’s wing
falls on the ground, Hen warns
her chicks. “Get out of the bare
and dry land.”
And they respond:
“We are not fools. We will run.”
