THE RABBIT AND THE TURTLE

Date: 2015-10-07; view: 1131.

BAD TEMPER

There once was a little boy who had a bad temper. His father gave him a bag of nails and told him that every time he lost his temper, he must hammer a nail into the back of the fence.

The first day, the boy had driven 37 nails into the fence. Over the next few weeks, as he learned to control his anger, the number of nails hammered daily gradually dwindled down. He discovered it was easier to hold his temper than to drive those nails into the fence.

Finally the day came when the boy didn't lose his temper at all. He told his father about it and the father suggested that the boy now pull out one nail for each day that he was able to hold his temper. The days passed and the boy was finally able to tell his father that all the nails were gone.

The father took his son by the hand and led him to the fence. He said, "You have done well, my son, but look at the holes in the fence. The fence will never be the same. When you say things in anger, they leave a scar just like this one. You can put a knife in a man and draw it out. It won't matter how many times you say I'm sorry. The wound is still there."

A verbal wound is as bad as a physical one.

“You are a slow old thing,” the rabbit said to the turtle. “How do you get anywhere on time?”

“I'll show you,” answered the turtle. “Let's run a race. Let's just see who finishes first.”

“What a funny idea!” laughed the rabbit. “Run a race with a turtle? Do you think you can beat me? Ha! You're on!”

The race began. In no time at all, the rabbit ran far ahead. “I'm so far in front, I'm going to stop and take a nap,” he said. “I might as well give that turtle a chance to catch up!”

Miles back, the turtle walked along. Slow were his steps. But never did he stop, never did he rest. He just kept going.

At last, he reached the sleeping rabbit. Slowly, the turtle lumbered by. The rabbit slept like a baby.

The turtle came very close to the finish like. Just then, the rabbit woke up. He jumped to his feet and dashed off. But it was too late. As fast as he was, the rabbit could not beat the turtle to the finish like. Slow as he was, the turtle won the race.

SLOW AND STEADY WINS THE RACE!