Theme: Doing to others what you would like them to do to you; tolerance

The Fox and the Creek

It was a very hot summer, and it hadn't rained for days. The fox, after walking through the forest for much of the morning, came across a small stream of fresh, crystal-clear water.

He was very thirsty and was drinking water quickly, when he noticed that there was a hare next to him, also drinking from the stream.

— What do you think you are doing? Can't you see you're disturbing me? — said the fox.

The hare looked at the fox, surprised by his rude tone.

— I'm just drinking some water, fox... I don't know how I could be bothering you, but I'll be leaving soon.

— You're dirtying the water with the mud from your fur! — growled the fox. — See how muddy the stream is where you are!

— Oh! Actually, because I’m smaller, I need to get closer to the water to be able to drink. Don't worry, fox, I'll jump to the other bank, so I don't dirty the water you drink.

— It's not enough! Go drinking water where I can't see you, or don't drink water at all!

The hare, very scared, jumped away. The fox went back drinking from the stream when a little sparrow appeared. The little bird took small dips in the shallow part of the stream and shook his wings to cool off.

— It was just what I needed! A loose sparrow! — growled the fox again. — You're wasting precious water and you're getting me wet with this excessive shower!

— It's very hot, fox... I'm so small, I just need a few drops to cool me down. I can move away a little, so I don't splash water on you.

— You can stay away from my stream, yes!

The sparrow took flight and left quickly. The fox thought he could finally drink water in peace when he heard someone approaching.

— Go away, whoever you are. This is my stream!

—The stream belongs to everyone, fox — said a deep voice.

The fox quickly turned around and saw a large lion staring at him.

— I was watching the animals that passed by here and I saw the way you treated the hare and the sparrow. Even though the hare was dirtying the water with her fur, it was enough for one of the two to move a little away so that you could both drink clean water. As for the sparrow, even though he was throwing water to the sides, you could have moved away so as not to receive the splashes.

The fox was cowering, as he knew he had not acted correctly.

— Tolerance is a very important virtue, especially in difficult times. Say, fox, how would you feel if I frightened you like you did to the hare and the sparrow?

— I would be very scared and still thirsty...

— Well done! — said the lion, lowering his head to drink from the stream. — I hope you learned your lesson.

Since that day, the fox began to act towards others as he would like them to act towards him, especially when sharing water from a stream.

(Text by Lívia Seneda)

Translation: 
Larissa Martine - larissa_am@hotmail.com
 

marcelapradacontato@gmail.com