An eagle swooped down from the sky like lightning, skillfully seized a lamb, and effortlessly soared away with it.

A Jackdaw witnessed the entire scene and deeply admired the eagle’s graceful hunting. He thought to himself, “If I could do that, everyone would be amazed and praise me even more than the eagle!”

He looked at the flock and declared to the other animals, “Watch closely! The eagle took a lamb, but I’ll go even further—I’ll carry off the biggest ram! Then you’ll see I’m greater than the eagle!”

With that, he imitated the eagle and dived at the largest ram.

But despite using all his strength, he couldn’t lift the ram—not even enough for the ram to notice he was there.

The other animals burst out laughing.

Defeated, the Jackdaw tried to fly away, but his claws had gotten tangled in the ram’s thick, curly wool. He couldn’t escape.

Just then, a shepherd noticed him, grabbed him, and placed him in a birdcage.

The shepherd’s child asked, “Daddy, what kind of bird is this?”

“That’s a Jackdaw,” the man replied. “But he likes to pretend he’s an eagle.”

Moral: Vanity can make people overestimate their abilities—and in the end, it only brings them harm.