Issue nº 69

Tales of Mother Nature

The lion and the cats

     A lion came across a group of cats having a chat. "I'm going to devour them," he thought.
     But then an odd feeling of calm came over him. And he decided to sit down with them and pay attention to what they were saying.
      - Good God! - said one of the cats, without noticing the lion's presence. - We have prayed all afternoon! We asked for the skies to rain mice on us!
     - And so far nothing has happened! - said another. - I wonder if the Lord really exists.
     The skies remained mute. And the cats lost their faith.
     The lion rose and went on his way, thinking: "funny how things are. I was going to kill those animals, but God stopped me. And even so, they stopped believing in divine grace. They were so worried about what was missing that they did not even notice the protection they were given."

In silence

     The tree was so laden with apples that its branches could not sway with the wind.
     - Why don't you make some noise? After all, we all have some vanity and we need to call the attention of others - commented the bamboo.
      - I don't need to. My fruit is my best publicity - answered the tree.

The daisy and selfishness

     "I am a daisy in a field of daisies," thought the flower. "Amidst others, it is impossible to notice my beauty."
     An angel heard what she was thinking and commented:
     - But you are so pretty!
     - I want to be the only one!
     In order not to hear any complaints, the angel carried her off to a city square.
     Some days later, the mayor went there with a gardener to make some changes to the square.
     - There is nothing of interest here. Dig up the earth and plant geraniums.
     - Hold on a minute! - cried out the daisy. - You'll kill me if you do that!
     - If there were some others like you, we could make some nice decoration - answered the mayor. - But there are no daisies to be found around here, and you on your own do not make a garden.
     Then he tore the flower from the ground.

Forgetting the magic

     A seagull was flying over a beach when it spotted a cat and immediately fell in love. She descended from the sky and asked:
     - Where are your wings?
     Each animal speaks only one language, and the cat did not understand what was said. But he did notice that the animal standing there had two strange things coming out of its body. "It must be some sort of disease," thought the cat.
     The seagull saw that her new love was staring at her:
     - Poor thing! He has been attacked by monsters, they've left him deaf and taken his wings.
     Filled with pity, she took the cat in her beak and carried him off high in the air. "At least we can spend some time together," she thought as they flew along. And the cat fell in love with that magical creature who allowed him to fly beyond his dreams.
     But since all her efforts to show her love were in vain, the seagull took him back to the ground and left in search of someone who would understand her better.
     For a few months the cat was deeply sad: he had flown high in the sky, seen a vast and beautiful world from above, and found a companion. But as time went by, he grew used to what he had been before, concluded that he had not been born to go so far in his dreams, and never more wished for something good to happen in his life, because that caused him so much suffering.

The porcupines and solidarity

     Reader Alvaro Conegundes tells that during the ice age many animals died because of the cold. Seeing this situation, the porcupines decided to group together, so they wrapped up well and protected one another.
     But they hurt one another with their thorns, and so then they decided to stay apart from one another.
     They started to freeze to death again. So they had to make a choice: either they vanished from the face of the earth or they accepted their neighbor's thorns.
     They wisely decided to stay together again. They learned to live with the small wounds that a very close relationship could cause, because the most important thing was the warmth given by the other.
     And in the end they survived.

On the road to Damascus

     The man was walking along the road to Damascus. He recalled his lost love and his soul was in grief. "Pity on those who know love," he thought. "They will never be happy, with the fear of losing the one they love."
     At that moment he heard a nightingale sing.
     - Why do you act like that? - the man asked the nightingale. - Don't you see that my beloved, who lived your song so much, is no longer here by my side?
     - I sing because I am happy - answered the nightingale.
     - Haven't you ever lost someone? - the man insisted.
     - Many times - answered the nightingale. - But my love remains all the same.
     And the man went on his way feeling more hopeful.