24/03/2021
THE MONKEY AND THE CROCODILE
Once there was a monkey who lived in a naval tree besides a river. This naval tree produced more fruits than any other tree in the jungle and its fruits were fresher and sweeter than the fruit on all the other trees.
Every day when the monkey ate this fruit, he was very happy. Not only could he eat to his fill, but he could throw some of the fruit into the river when his friend the crocodile came by. The crocodile and the monkey spent many hours sitting by the shore of the river talking, and in time they became good friends.
The crocodile always took some food to his dear wife. She loved the naval fruit so much that she became addicted to its taste and freshness. One day she thought, โIf the monkey ate this fruit every day, then his flesh must also taste sweet, especially his liver. Oh I want to taste the monkeyโs liverโ. She thought about it and thought about it till she couldnโt stand it any longer.
Finally she said to her husband, โI want to taste the monkeys liver. Please bring him home, so I can satisfy my hunger.โ
The crocodile was shocked! โYou want to eat the monkeyโs liver? But heโs my friend! I love him. And heโs so generous to us. My dear, itโs impossibleโ.
The lady crocodile became angry. She demanded that she bring the monkey to her. She demanded that he let her taste the monkeyโs liver otherwise she would leave.
The crocodile was torn apart. He loved his wife, and didnโt want to lose her. He loved his friend, and didnโt want to lose him, why did he have to lose him, why did he have to make this difficult choice?
In the end, he decided to lose his friend. With a heavy heart, he swam slowly back across the river and sat under the naval tree.
โOh monkeyโ he called, โitโs a lonely night, and I feel like going for a ride on the river. Why donโt you come along? I could show you the beauty of the riverโ
โI donโt think soโ, said the monkey. โI donโt think thatโs as good idea, and anyway I canโt swim, and Iโm afraid of the water.
โI am the king of the river; you donโt need to be afraid when you ride on my back. Who can you trust if not your friends? โOkโ, he said, โIโll come with youโ. He jumped onto the crocodiles back and they sailed into the river.
It was a wonderful ride, and the monkey was really happy but the crocodile was quiet and deep in thought.
โWhatโs the matter?โ asked the monkey. The crocodile almost burst into tears. Iโm sorry, my friend. I lied to you. I am not doing this to entertain you. Rather, I am taking you to my wife. She wants to eat your liver.
โEat my liver!!!โ the monkey was astonished. โWhy does she want to eat my liver?โ โShe knows that you east the fruit of the naval tree every day. She thinks that your liver must be very sweet and tender, so she wants to eat itโ.
โI seeโ, said the monkey. He saw that his life was in danger. He thought for a minute. โMy friend, donโt feel bad on my accountโ, he said. โI would be honored to give my liver to your wife. But you should have told me about this before we left the naval treeโ. โWhy?โ asked the crocodile. โWell, I always wash my liver in the river and then hand it on a branch of the tree.โ
โOH?โ
โIf you take me back to the tree, Iโll get it for you. Then you can take it to your wife.โ The crocodile swam quickly back to the naval tree.
โHah! Crocodile! Donโt you know that I canโt give you my liver? This has been a good lesson to me about trust
