Once there was this bird which used to visit my home every week. We had a long tinted glass window running along the middle of the house. So this bird used to come every weekend, whistle and then peck at the glass. Initially I thought it wanted to get inside, but the windows couldn't be opened ever; they just let in conditioned light. Later I observed the taps/pecks of that bird became frenetic. It used to repeatedly hit the thick glass with its tiny beak. No dent was made, such has come human engineering.
That bird came regularly, years together. Three long years. I still had no idea what it wanted, our pane persevered in thick and thin, so did the determined bird.
One day I noticed that for two consecutive weeks, the bird hadn't returned. Part of me was relieved, because at times the constant pecks on the glass grew vexing. But another part of me wanted to know if that bird was alright.
So I just left the confines of the internal walls of the house and walked towards the garden wall, which was beyond the tall glass window pane.
There, fallen in grass, I saw a frozen relics of what remains of the bird. It hadn't gone away, it was dead. I bent down to take in more detail, I had no idea how long birds lived, so was curious as to the death of that bird, who was in a way my passive companion.
Few of its feathers were being attacked by the ants, otherwise parts of it still remained. Carefully I dusted the gentle body and took it up to my face to inspect. It's eyes were wide, as if in fury. It's beak was cracked, wings aloof as if it fell midflight and couldn't flap either wings one last time.
I thought it must've overworked itself, indeed. But why?
It was late summer then, blue sky, white clouds, lazy weather.
I first looked around, to find nothing suspicious then looked up at my window. It stood towering over the garden, like a huge mirror... A mirror! A MIRROR! Oh yes, that's what the bird saw! It's own reflection!
All these years, the bird was trying to fight itself. In an illusion which eventually led to its death. I learned a great lesson from this.
Quite often we try to fight ourselves, to fight against what we know better than anyone else and it'll consume us. It will destroy. We must embrace who we are, we can try to best our abilities, but we cannot try to fight against them!
You can't wage a war against yourself and win.
