In a small yard lived a flock of chickens. Every day, they scratched at the ground, searching for grain and sharing the latest news from their poultry world. Among them was Hen—ordinary, unremarkable among the others. She wasn’t particularly beautiful or melodious, but she had a kind heart and always helped her sisters: carrying water for some, sheltering others from the rain beneath her wings.
One evening, as the sun dipped behind the hills, a snake slithered into the yard. A swift, treacherous bite—and Hen felt her leg go numb as fever surged through her body. Staggering, she hurried toward the coop, hoping for support.
“Let me in… I don’t feel well…” she whispered weakly.
But the chickens were afraid. One murmured,
“If we let her in, the poison will spread to us too.”
One by one, they turned their backs on their sister. Limping, Hen left the only home she had ever known and vanished into the night. The bite hurt, but the betrayal cut deeper—those who had shared every day with her had abandoned her in her darkest hour.
Days turned into nights. Hen survived alone in a cave beyond the woods, struggling to stay alive. Her leg withered from the venom, and food was scarce. Only a tiny hummingbird would fly to the coop with updates:
“She’s alive. She needs your help.”
Yet each had an excuse:
“I have eggs to sit on…”
“I must search for more food…”
“My own troubles keep me busy…”
The hummingbird returned to the cave alone, and Hen fought on.
Time passed. Then, one day, the hummingbird came one last time:
“Your sister is dead. Alone, without farewells, without the warmth of family…”
Only then did the chickens grasp the weight of their choices. They hurried to the cave—with belated tears and words that could no longer change anything. Where Hen should have been, they found only a scrap of paper:
*People won’t take a few steps to help you while you’re alive… but they’ll walk miles to bury you. And so many tears are shed not for love—but for the torment of guilt…*
From that day on, the chickens gathered every evening, and no sister was ever left in need again. For they had learned one truth: love cannot be saved for later.