When a group of angry foreign birds demand that Maya and her friends participate in their evil plots of revenge and destruction against humans by exploiting their weaknesses, Maya and her friends quickly realize that if they don't think of an alternative plan, the entire world will be destroyed. Maya and her friends utilize their lifelong experiences to come up with an alternative plan by learning from human's strength and ingenuity. With that, they not only convince foreign birds but also the entire animal kingdom to participate in their new vision. Thus, together they not only save their forest, but also the world. This is a hopeful and inspirational tale of a group of birds and animals who- despite all the odds against them- overcome their agony and sorrow. They not only save their forest and habitat, but also assist humans in their struggles to protect the environment and save the planet from more destruction. This novel is a metaphor that discusses our past, present and future in an easy to understand language as seen through birds' perspective. If you enjoyed The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho or Life of Pi by Yann Martel, you will certainly love this book. If you cherished The Lion King or Finding Nemo, you will love this book as well.

Birds Chasing Hope

By Ashish Modi

AuthorHouse

Copyright © 2011 Dr. Ashish Modi
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4670-5303-7

Contents

CHAPTER 1 An Unforgiving Storm.......................1CHAPTER 2 Globe Trotting Maya........................9CHAPTER 3 Another Dreadful Day.......................19CHAPTER 4 Maya and Molly.............................33CHAPTER 5 Sunshine Returns...........................39CHAPTER 6 Maya and Toby..............................45CHAPTER 7 Friends Reunite............................55CHAPTER 8 Strangers Arrive...........................71CHAPTER 9 An Evil Plot...............................93CHAPTER 10 An Ultimatum to Humans.....................111CHAPTER 11 We Must Overcome...........................139CHAPTER 12 One Week Later.............................165CHAPTER 13 One Year Later.............................173

Chapter One

An Unforgiving Storm

Maya had many close calls. A huge limb right above her head almost crushed her to death when lightening struck the tree. The power of lightening had destroyed many old trees by splitting them into small checker-like pieces. The typhoon had become more and more violent, as the other storms merged to create a single, deadly, unforgiving storm. "A few more days ..." Maya kept telling herself.

It had been thirty-eight days since Maya last saw the sun. She had been counting each day, as they brought new miseries into her world. Charcoal clouds were still blocking the sun from penetrating the sky. The entire forest remained soaked with rain. Though the rain had receded for days now, many uprooted trees in the forest were still embedded in the mud. Soaking wet for many days now, Maya had been imprisoned on the same limb. Her feathers had become so saturated with water that, even if she wanted to fly, she could not. It was as though her wings were stuck to her body with super-glue. Lonely, sad and depressed, she sat there, thinking that only the sun could bring her relief.

After thirty-seven days of relentless storms, the appearance of the forest was one of the universal calamities. "Thirty seven days and some more to come," Maya told herself repeatedly. What had started as just another thunderstorm had become the most deadly hurricane in history. Maya remembered the hottest summer days before the whirlwind. At first, the winds intensified. Then, the sky darkened and the rain started. As the descending cool air met the hot air rising from below, falling droplets met ascending droplets forming bigger drops. As they grew in size, they fell faster before the rain started hammering the forest. The combination of rain and furious winds destroyed everything that stood in their way. By Maya's reckoning, the wind accelerated to cyclone. The trees in the forest swayed back and forth, creating an appearance of ghostly dancers-especially at night. As the rumbling of the storm continued, Maya could see the spiraling funnels traveling at high speed, uprooting thousands of trees. As the storm began, sunlight sprayed its eye and produced scary olive-green clouds and a spectral pink light. This created a visual effect, as if the sky were bleeding.

All hell broke loose when the river began to overflow and the forest's natural dams started to leak. As the water in the river rose rapidly, the winds raised surges that turned even more destructive than the storm itself. When the river broke its banks, Maya closed her eyes. The water rushed through the forest like a raging bull.

Already saturated ground could no longer absorb the water, turning the forest into a floating island. The once vibrant forest filled with animal and birds became a deathtrap for many of them. The flash floods also created significant risk to the inhabitants who lived beneath the surface of the forest. Millions of insects, spiders, and snakes lived in the dark tunnels of their underground homes; decomposed leaves and bones where they had built dwellings for themselves in the cavernous tunnels. Their survival also depended upon the fate of the forest. The torrential rain and flash flood became cadaverous for them, as well. Those who were strong fled the forest whereas others like Maya, who stayed put, made the mistake of their lifetime. Nature is finally avenging itself, as it can no longer tolerate the abuse by its children, Maya thought. Unfortunately, she and the other innocent animals were the ones paying the ultimate price.

Maya kept wondering, Is this thunderstorm the worst I've ever seen? Is this even worse than the tsunami after that major earthquake? That tsunami took so many innocent lives in many different parts of the world. Maya saw the tsunami waves from the sky above and had tried to caution humans on the beach, but all of her efforts were ineffective as she could not speak their language. When she'd tried to warn them by flying close to them, they welcomed her with stones. She'd felt helpless and frustrated. A few minutes later, the gigantic ocean waves were swallowing up people and their belongings like a whale devouring planktons. For the first time, Maya blamed herself for not speaking the human language. But then, she questioned, What if I did? Would they have listened to my pleading? Maya remained dubious. She knew that the humans were too preoccupied with racing through their lives. Why would they pay attention to a crying bird? They had no time. They were always on the go and even at night, they barely slept. They had no time to listen to a bird.

Maya kept on thinking, Is this storm a worse catastrophe than the earthquake I witnessed a few years back? That earthquake had completely flattened the entire city and leveled all the tall buildings and houses in it. It had killed thousands of people and destroyed countless lives. Once again, Maya felt numb. She wanted to help. But how could she?

Is this even worse than the wildfire that had burned forests and many houses in the nearby village? Maya lived in a forest and knew that it was natural for fire to happen, but it was the worst fire she had ever seen. For a moment, she felt fortunate to be a bird. But then, what about other animals? From the sky above, she saw zebras, kangaroos, monkeys, and elephants running desperately to save their lives. Where could they go? All the escape routes were engulfed by the raging fire, so many of them were burned alive. Within a few days, the forests and cities had become ghost towns. Even Maya could not escape the smoke and her beautiful soft feathers had become ashen with gray dust. Despite all, Maya had tried her best to save as many lives she could. A sleeping owl became her friend for life, as she woke him up in time and saved his family. Maya felt fortuitous because she spoke the same language as the owl.

Is this storm a worse catastrophe than the volcanic eruptions a few years back when volcanic ash clouds blanketed the skies for many months? Those dusty clouds had turned many forests and towns into dry gray deserts. Many birds fled the region, as breathing became more and more tiresome. The floating lava burned every living creature on that mountain top. As it merged with the ocean water, the lava created hot fumes that made the ocean look like a pot of boiling water.

Maya could see the devastation in her forest. She watched as the decaying carcasses of dead animals slowly disintegrated. Maya felt lucky but wasn't sure whether to appreciate God for her own survival or to blame Him for everyone else's misfortune. Sitting above the ground, she could see that few animals survived. Zebras and monkeys had...