🌸The Hare and the Tortoise

The Hare and the Tortoise

Once upon a time, in a peaceful forest, there lived a hare and a tortoise. The hare was very proud of his speed. He always bragged to the other animals, “No one can run faster than me!” He often laughed at the tortoise, saying, “You are so slow, you will never get anywhere in life.”

The tortoise, though slow, was calm and wise. He did not like the hare’s arrogance. One day, he said quietly, “Hare, let us run a race. Then we will see who is faster.” The hare laughed loudly. “You must be joking! How can you, a slow creature, ever beat me?” But the tortoise replied firmly, “We shall see.”

The forest animals gathered to watch the race. The starting point was near a big tree, and the finish line was across the meadow, under a shady oak. At the signal, the hare sprinted forward with great speed, leaving the tortoise far behind. “This race will be so easy,” thought the hare. “I can rest and still win.”

The hare saw a cool, grassy spot under a tree and decided to lie down. “I’ll take a little nap. The tortoise is so slow, he won’t reach anywhere near the finish line before I wake up,” he thought. Soon, the hare fell fast asleep.

Meanwhile, the tortoise kept walking slowly but steadily. Step by step, he moved forward without stopping. He did not rest, he did not give up. His determination carried him across the meadow. Finally, the tortoise reached the finish line.

When the hare woke up, he looked around and saw the tortoise almost at the finish line. Shocked, the hare ran as fast as he could, but it was too late. The tortoise had already won the race.

All the animals cheered for the tortoise. The hare hung his head in shame. From that day on, he learned never to make fun of others.

Moral: Pride goes before a fall. Slow and steady wins the race.