At night the song birds of the woods fly to us for our
protection. We hide the nests of mother birds. The light winds
stay with us and caress us." And the leaves felt very proud and
important.
"What you say is all very true, but you should not forget us,"
said a voice from the earth. "We are surely worth something."
"And who are you? Where do you grow?" asked the leaves.
"We are buried deep in the ground, far below you, but we feed the
stem and make you grow. We are the roots. You owe your beauty to
us. We are not beautiful as you are, but we do not die. Winter
does not change us, but when it comes you fall. The tree stands
firm, for it is held in place by us. If we should die, the tree
would die and you would die with it."
THE BULL AND THE GNAT
A gnat perched upon the horn of a bull. "Dear sir," he said to the
bull, "I am sorry to trouble you, but I am too worn out to go any
farther. Does my weight tire you? When you can bear it no longer,
I shall go on."
"You need not leave on my account," said the bull. "I did not know
when you sat down and I shall not miss you when you leave."
THE FARMER AND HIS THREE SONS
A farmer who had worked hard all his life was taken sick. He knew
that he must soon die.
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