Great Spirit decided it was time to give the winged (the birds) their colors. Before this time all of the birds were gray. Their feathers did not carry the beautiful colors they do today. Great Spirit told all of the winged to gather at a special lake which was hidden high in the mountains. All of the winged flew to this magical body of water. Great Spirit told them to dive into the water and they would emerge with beautiful colors in their feathers. Brave little Hummingbird dove in first. He didn't stay long but when he came out he was a beautiful green and had ruby on his throat. Jaybird was next. He stayed a little longer than Hummingbird had. When he emerged he was a bright blue and had a white throat. He wore a black necklace low on his neck. Wren splashed into the depths. When he got out of the water he was brown with a golden chest. Cardinal flew into the lake. He stayed in a bit longer than the others. When Cardinal broke the surface he was bright red and beautiful. Bluebird splashed into the water and stayed for a while. He came up blue with his beautiful red breast. Indigo Bunting dived in. He stayed linger than any of the previous birds. He came up such a beautiful blue that the other birds gasped at his gorgeous color.
