"His First Flight" by Liam O' Flaherty

This story is written by Liam O Flaherty who is well known for his novels and short stories. This story is about a family of seagulls. In which the psychology and intelligence of these birds have been described. The writer talks about a young seagull that was afraid of flying. After going through the whole story one can easily conclude that the writer has deeply observed and analyzed the behavior of these birds. This story is in a very simple and convincing manner.

There was family of seagulls that was consisted of six members. Among them there were parents three brother and one sister. All the youngster of the family had started flying except one seagull. He was afraid of flying because he thought that his wings would never support him. His parents tried their best to persuade him to fly but all in vain. Even there threats were not more than useless attempt. At last he was left alone, hungry and unattended. His parents thought, that, one day by the hands of hunger he will definitely join them.

The young seagull was alone on his ledge. He found some pieces of fish to eat but after that he was left with nothing. He became impatient with hunger and search every inch of his ledge for food. He ran to the brink of the ledge and attempted to fly but sue to lack of courage he could not succeed. He had been all-alone for the last twenty-four hours and none of his family members came to see him. He had been watching his parents teaching his brother and sister the art of flying the day before. They were taught to skim the waves and dive for the fish. The next morning the whole family gathered on a plateau jut opposite to him and taunted him for his cowardice. He wanted to join his family but there was a deep breach between his family and the place where he was sitting.

The young seagull was experiencing a dismal situation as he had nothing to eat and he could not seek food for himself. Meanwhile, he saw his mother tearing and eating a fish. He begged his mother to bring some food while calling her mournfully. At this she took pity on him and started flying towards him. She was carrying a piece of fish in her beak. As she came near to his ledge, she became motionless in the air. The young seagull was surprised because of that unexpected situation. He was maddened with hunger. The piece offish within the reach of the seagull and without even thinking he dived at the fish. He made his way in space without opening his wing. He heard the swish of his mothers wings as she swooped upwards. This situation lasted for a while but t soon his wings opened and he started flying easily. He flapped his wings and started curveting, soaring, banking and diving without any fear.

His family members were very happy and they were all crying to express their joy on his successful flight. They were offering him the pieces of fish as a token of their pleasure. After flying for sometime he became tired. He wanted to come down on the surface of green sea. As he touched the surface of the sea, his legs sank into the water. He cried with fear but when his belly touched the water, he felt that he was floating. He was no longer afraid. He maid his maiden flight successfully.

There is nothing to say that through birds, the writer wants to convey the moral of self-confidence along with self-reliance to all of us. The parents can endure the burden of their descendant to some extent and not forever. So everyone should undertake the effort to become independent while availing the available guidance.