Story time
The Three Billy Goats Gruff
Once upon a time, back when animals could talk, there were three boy goats, called billy goats, who would walk from their house up the hill to eat the thick, green grass and get fat. Their last name was “Gruff.” To get to the hill, the three billy goats had to cross a bridge that went over a bubbling stream.
Under that wooden bridge lived a big, hairy, ugly troll. He had big eyes and long teeth and a pointed nose. And he ate billy goats like they were microwave popcorn.
One spring day, the youngest Billy Goat Gruff came to the bridge. As he walked across the bridge, his hooves made a clip-pity-clop sound.
“Trip, trap, trip, trap,” said the bridge.
“Who’s that stomping on my bridge?” yelled the troll.
“Oh, it is just me, the littlest Billy Goat Gruff. I am just going over to eat the green grass on the hill to make myself fat,” said the youngest Billy Goat Gruff in his wee little voice.
“And I’m coming to gobble you up,” said the troll.
"Oh, no! Please don’t eat me! I’m so little, I’m just a snack,” said the billy goat. “Wait a bit till the second Billy Goat Gruff comes. He’s much bigger than I am.”
“Well, okay, keep going,” said the troll.
* * *
A little while later, the second Billy Goat Gruff came across the bridge. Trip, trap, trip, trap, trip, trap, went the bridge.
“Who’s that tripping over my bridge?” roared the troll.
“Oh, it’s just me, the second Billy Goat Gruff. I am just going over to eat the green grass on the hill to make myself fat,” said the billy goat.
"I’m going to eat you up,” said the troll.
"Oh, no! Don’t eat me. Wait until the big Billy Goat Gruff comes. He’s a lot bigger meal than me.”
“Well, okay. But hurry off my bridge,” said the troll.
* * *
Just then, here comes the big Billy Goat Gruff. Trip, trap, trip, trap, trip, trap, went the bridge because the third billy goat was so heavy that the bridge groaned under him.
“Who’s that tramping over my bridge?” roared the troll.
“It is the big Billy Goat Gruff,” said the billy goat, whose voice was even louder and meaner than the troll’s voice.
“I’m coming to eat you up,” yelled the troll.
“You just try it,” said the big Billy Goat Gruff. “I’ll poke out your eyeballs and I’ll pull of your ears, and I’ll crush you to bits like mushed-up cereal at the bottom of the box!” said the big billy goat.
That was what he said!
* * *
And then he ran at the troll, and he poked at the troll’s eyes with his horns and pulled his ears and stepped on his feet. The troll decided that maybe it was okay if the billy goats ate the grass on the hill after all.
* * *
So the Billy Goats Gruff came every day to eat the grass on the hill, and they got so fat that they could hardly fit across the bridge. And if you go to this hillside, you will still see them there, fat and happy. And if you look closely, you might see the troll under the bridge.
But don’t worry — he won’t bother you.
Friends Forever
Let us enjoy reading this one of African Stories of Friends Forever.
A mouse and a frog were friends. Every morning the frog would hop out of his pond and go to visit his friend who lived in a hole in the side of a tree. He would return home at noon.
The mouse delighted in his friend’s company unaware that the friend was slowly turning into an enemy. The reason? The frog felt slighted because though he visited the mouse everyday, the mouse on his part, had never made an attempt to visit him.
One day he felt he had been humiliated enough. When it was time for him to take leave of the mouse, he tied one end of a string around his own leg, tied the other end to the mouse’s tail, and hopped away, dragging the hapless mouse behind him.
The frog dived deep into the pond. The mouse tried to free himself but couldn’t, and soon drowned. His bloated body floated to the top.
A hawk saw the mouse floating on the pond’s surface. He swooped down, and grabbing the mouse in his talons, flew to the branch of a nearby tree. The frog, of course, was hauled out of the water too. He desperately tried to free himself, but couldn’t and the hawk soon put an end to his struggles.
In Africa they have a saying: ‘Don’t dig too deep a pit for your enemy, you may fall into it yourself’.
The Hare and theTortoise
The Hare and the Tortoise
There once was a speedy Hare who bragged about how fast he could run. Tired of hearing him boast, the Tortoise challenged him to a race. All the animals in the forest gathered to watch.
The Hare ran down the road for a while and then paused to rest. He looked back at the tortoise and cried out, "How do you expect to win this race when you are walking along at your slow, slow pace?"
The Hare stretched himself out alongside the road and fell asleep, thinking, "There is plenty of time to relax."
The Tortoise walked and walked, never ever stopping until he came to the finish line.
The animals who were watching cheered so loudly for Tortoise that they woke up the Hare. The Hare stretched, yawned and began to run again, but it was too late. Tortoise had already crossed the finish line.
Moral: Slow and steady wins the race.
This is the story that we have all grown up with. But recently, two additions have been proposed to the story.
Addition 1
After being defeated by the tortoise, the hare did some soul-searching. He knew that though he had tried hard in the beginning, he was not consistent, and had grown overconfident. He was determined to undo his mistakes, and invited tortoise for another race. This time, the rabbit was careful to run the whole distance, and of course, emerged the winner.
Moral: Fast and consistent may be better than slow and steady.
Addition 2
Well, after emerging the loser in the second race, the tortoise thought long and hard. He knew that in any traditional terrain, the hare would win, if he was fast and consistent. Therefore, he thought of a non-traditional terrain for the race. Then he invited the rabbit for another race. This time the rabbit laughed out loud, thinking that the tortoise was out of his head. But the tortoise insisted that there should be another race and the terrain would be decided by the tortoise. The rabbit agreed to the idea.
The race began. The rabbit was leading in front, with the tortoise far back trundling along. Around half way through the race, they came across a river. The rabbit halted on the bank of the river, wondering how to cross the river. Meanwhile, the tortoise approached the river slowly, got in to the water, swam across, climbed up on the other bank, ran the last few kilometres, and won the race.
Moral: when your capabilities are below par, choose a playing ground that gives you a natural advantage.