The Gnat and TheBull

Gnat was buzzing around one morn
Settled on the tip of one of Bull's horn
After a lengthy rest he got ready to fly away
And excused himself to Bull for his resting place
"You must be glad for me to go," the little Gnat declared
"It's all the same to me, Gnat, I did not know you were there"

'We are often of greater importance in our own eyes than in the eyes of our neighbor'

  Another one of the things we've all experienced. Probably have one friend who acts like this. These are the people we can't seem to avoid. Just come buzzing in out of nowhere. At the same time though, we've probably been guilty of doing the same thing ourselves. I know I have seen myself as more important even though it was only my opinion but it's not something you're aware of until you're told about it.

Copyright ©Zenmoda 2010, Aesop In Verse - Classic Aesop's Fables Retold

The Goose with the Golden Eggs

Once there was a Countryman
The most wonderful Goose possessed
And every day he went to her
A golden egg was in her nest

He took the eggs to the market
And soon became quite rich at last
But only gets one egg a day
He needed to get more eggs fast

Then one day while counting money
The idea came into his mind
Kill the Goose and cut her open
Take all the eggs that he can find

When this terrible deed was done
He discovered to his dread
Not a single golden egg was found
And his precious Goose was dead

'Too much greed will leave you with nothing'

You hear about this one all the time. People losing all their possessions either from gambling or from the stock markets. It's probably good to want more because that gives us motivation but if we want more even though we're pretty comfortable with what we have. If something was giving you a good thing, be happy with it instead of wanting more. Better than ruining it and having nothing afterwards. Not much you can do with a dead goose except eat it.

By the way, you probably noticed but I got bored so decided to make everything a little bit more prettier with illustrations!!

Copyright ©Zenmoda 2010, Aesop In Verse - Classic Aesop's Fables Retold

The Travellers and the Plane Tree

Two travellers walking in the sun
Sought the shade of a tree
As they laid down under the leaves
They saw it was a Plane Tree

"How useless is the Plane," said one
"It bears no fruit at all"
"All it serves is to litter"
"All its leaves on the floor"

"Ungrateful creatures!" said a voice
"You lie in my shade cooling"
"Yet you say I am useless"
"You do not deserve this blessing"

'Some men underrate their best blessings'

Many people are unhappy with what they get. You see it all the time. They're always complaining about things and it's always the little things. They need to see the bigger picture. I guess everyone takes something for granted. It's almost in our nature I reckon. We don't realise what we have until someone either tells us or we lose it.

Copyright ©Zenmoda 2010, Aesop In Verse - Classic Aesop's Fables Retold

The Crab and Its Mother

A Mother crab said to her son one day
"Why on Earth do you walk sideways"
"You should always walk straight forward"
Young crab said, "Please show, if you may"

"I will promise to walk the way you want"
"If only you show me the way."
So the old crab tried but it was all in vain
For she too could only walk sideways

'Do not tell others how to act unless you can set a good example'

 I don't think I have ever told anyone to do anything that I am not willing to do myself first. I like to lead by example. It would be too hypocritical to tell others what to do if you're unable or unwilling to do it. However, like all of us, I think we've encountered someone like this, someone who tells us what to do but doesn't follow it themselves. And based on that, we automatically hate them as well.

Copyright ©Zenmoda 2010, Aesop In Verse - Classic Aesop's Fables Retold

The North Wind and the Sun

The North Wind argued with the Sun
To see who was most strong
As they continued bickering
A cloaked traveller passed along

They decided that the stronger one
Be Whomever can remove
The cloak right off the traveller's back
So the North Wind set to prove

A chilly howling blast was sent
That whipped the cloak about
But he wrapped it even closer to him
North Wind failed without a doubt

The Sun shone out with all its warmth
The rays made all less colder
The traveller loosened his cloak
And hanged it from his shoulder

As the rays got warmer and warmer
The traveller removed his hat
Until at last he pulled off his cloak
And in the shade he sat

'Persuasion is better than force'

Now I definitely agree with this one since I have had more success with persuading someone than using force. However others will beg to differ with me as force will also do the job but in terms of energy used, you use less energy trying to persuade someone than with force. With the same outcome, persuading is definitely more efficient. But I have to mention, you also have to know what you're doing.

Copyright ©Zenmoda 2010, Aesop In Verse - Classic Aesop's Fables Retold