Theme: Pride, Self-Esteem

The Gazelle and the Frog

Bela was a beautiful gazelle. In fact, she was the most beautiful of the Golden Fields, where she lived.

Beyond her beauty, Bela was also agile. She ran very fast with her long legs, jumping long distance, as if she were flying.

The other animals even stop to admire her. The problem is that Bela was also very proud. She didn’t like to be with those who she thought that was not like her.

Bela enjoyed going to the lake to cool off from her races and to admire her reflection on the water, which showed how beautiful she was. However, the frogs lived there who she found them disgusting.

One day, as she approached the shore, she unintentionally touched Jorge, a big fat frog. Like every toad, Jorge had cold damp skin. When she realized that she had leaned against a frog, Bela jumped high and ran away.

Jorge did not have time to say anything. He thought he might have apologized for scaring her, but in truth, he had been terrified too. He was almost stepped on by an animal far larger than him.

Sometime later, Bela came back. She came with a face of disgust, looking right where she put her feet. It was accompanied by some gazelles, all with the same attitude. As soon as the frog was seen, Bela began to shout:

- That's it! We, who are better animals than you, need to come to the lake without getting scared or have to tolerate you!

- What?! Said Jorge, astonished. - How come? Here is our home too!

Bela then began to badmouth of the frogs. She made up arguments against them and insisted on they should leave the Golden Fields.

At first, the frogs thought it was absurd but Bela was very astute. You have to be careful with people like that, because they can convince others even of what it is not true.

Bela was smart and beautiful but she had no wisdom. She didn’t know the Law of Equality which says that all God’s children are equal. All the attributes we have are by permission of our Creator to help one another not to think ourselves better than our brothers.

Thus, as the days passed, the frogs became convinced from what Bela said that they were not good enough, ugly, embarrassing and they were not allowed to live there. Because of this, Jorge and the other frogs left the Golden Fields.

They walked a lot, looking for another good place to live. They needed plenty of water with plants around them and little animals because that's what they ate. But they could not find any of it.

Several weeks passed. Jorge, who used to be fat, was already thin. The singing that the frogs did every night was no longer heard. They were all down.

At this point, these conditions made Jorge stop and think:

- Before, we were happy and lived in harmony with everyone. We did no harm to the gazelles. They were intolerant to us. If God made us like this, green, small, with cold skin, what's the matter? We'd better go back and not be ashamed to be like this.

And then the frogs did other long walk of several days until they were able to reach their beloved home, the lake of Golden Fields.

It happens that after such a long time things had changed there. Clouds of flies, grasshoppers and many types of mosquitoes were everywhere. The large animals had lost weight and were tired. They spent most of the time moving themselves, trying to scare off the daring insects that stung them uncomfortably and into their eyes, nose and ears, in an irritating insistence.

When they heard of the toads' return, they gave thanks to God. They knew that frogs ate the insects and kept their population under control.

Practically all the gazelles plus the animals of other species ran to the lake to receive Jorge and his group with the greatest joy.

It was then that Jorge realized what had happened and how toads were really important.

From behind Bela came ashamed and downcast. She looked even sick. Besides physical exhaustion, she also felt remorse for having offended the frogs and for being the cause of everything. Fortunately, God allows suffering so that He teaches us the lessons we didn’t want to learn by other ways. And Bella had taken her lesson.

She looked directly at George and said:

- Please, forgive me Jorge! Now I understand that no one is better than anyone. We are just different and we need each other a lot.

- You do not have to ask me for forgiveness, Bela - the toad answered - I had to learn to have self-esteem and this was only possible due to everything that happened.

Bela smiled relieved and grateful for Jorge's kindness to forgive her. He smiled back. They came along.

In the days that followed, the toads, hungry as they were, ate so much but so much that soon they became fat again. And without the insects, the big animals were calm again.

Bela returned to having the good appearance she had before but she became really beautiful because now her heart was beautiful too.

Translation:
Larissa Martine - larissa_am@hotmail.com

marcelapradacontato@gmail.com