THE LION AND THE MOTHER-RAT
THE LION AND THE MOTHER-RAT

One day, the mother-rat gave birth to four children and after that became very hungry. Since she had nothing in her house at that time, she decided to go and look food outside. She covered the baby rats and left. As soon she stepped and covered a few poles, behold a very big lion that was also scouting for food being terrible hungry himself. On sighting the rat, he rejoiced and decided to start from there. He quickly collected the rat in one grab and was about to drop it inside his big mouth when the rat started begging him to spare her life. She reminded the lion that considering his size, eating her will not solve his hunger problem in any way. She further pleaded with the lion to have mercy on her new born babies who will certainly starve to death if she fails to return to them. She finally reminded the lion that sparing her life could of benefit to him one day as she could be in a position to help him on a day like that.

On hearing the rat mention helping him one day, the lion started laughing uncontrollably while holding the rat in one hand. He roared in laughter so hilariously and shaking the forest that tears started coming out of his eyes. The rat was confused and more afraid why the lion was laughing this way. When the lion eventually stopped laughing, he told the mother-rat to stop day dreaming and imagining the impossible. He told the mother-rat to be realistic and focus on the mercy she was asking for and forget about helping him one day. He boasted that such a day does not exist and will never be. He went ahead to say that considering his might and size, he was capable of taking care of himself whenever he is threatened. He added that if by chance any danger comes his way and he is unable to handle it, even one million mother-rats will not make any difference. After saying this, he threw that mother-rat away and cautioned her about insulting him with such a remark again. The mother-rat got up from the ground after rolling several times and shook off all the sands on her body, thanked her stars and ran away.

One week after, this same lion was caught in a well-crafted rope-trap mounted by an experienced lion-catcher. When the lion stepped into it, the trap exploded and swept the four legs of the lion off the ground and landed it on its back. The two legs of the lion were held together separately by the ropes and the powerful beast not only helpless but also powerless. The animal knew that the end had come. The humiliation of ending in a woman’s kitchen was more torturing to him than the violent end his life was coming to as soon as the owner of the trap appears.

This was the situation of things when the same rat appeared on the scene after another round of food searching expedition. When the rat came closer, she recognised the lion through twisted whiskers the lion was bearing and bold white spots on him. The rat on seeing the predicament and the hopelessness of his situation of the lion decided to help. She came to this conclusion having remembered it was the same lion that spared her life on that fateful day.

She quickly dropped the meat she stole from somebody’s kitchen by the side and climbed on top of the big lion and began cut the big ropes with her sharp teeth. She started with the forelegs before switching over to the hind legs. When the four legs were free, the lion stood up, speechless. He admired the extra-ordinary unknown power in the small rat, the wisdom and the courage and saluted the rat for saving his life. The rat seized the moment and introduced herself and reminded the lion of the boast he about his invincibility and strength. The lion could not control his tears of shame and apologized to the rat for his careless and foolish boast. He promised the rat that he will always defend and protect him in future and that he will instruct his children not to molest rats again anywhere anytime. The end of the story.

MORAL LESSONS

What happened to the mother-rat shows us that there is a always a potential lurking at the next corner of the street looking for someone to devour. Those enemies are often stronger than us and they are everywhere. It could be armed robbers, kidnappers, arsonists, road accidents, sickness and disappointments. Try your best to avoid by hiding in your house as much as you can. Always go in a company of friends and other people if possible. The enemy can become afraid and may not show up.
The mother-rat should learn how to prepare for rainy days and gather sufficient food next time before putting to bed. This will not expose her to such an avoidable danger in future. Remember to save money no matter how little you earn. It gives a lot confidence when trouble suddenly shows up and threatens to put you to shame. If you don’t have up to ten thousand naira in your account when your father-in-law suddenly dies, you will become a laughing stock to both your enemies and friends. You must have somewhere to start from. The bank is not there for nothing.
The lion did not play the role of a big brother and king of the jungle by protecting the weaker members of the forest community. We should not take advantage of those who are not as endowed as we are and deprive them of what they possess including their lives simply because they cannot defend themselves. Be useful to your brothers and sisters, neighbours and friends. You never can tell.

The lion forgot that ultimate power does reside in any human being or beast but on the Creator of the universe. He arrogated to himself the arrogance of thinking that he is indestructible. We must know that great power is reposed in everything including the small needle, pin, even single grain of sand until they decide to deal with us especially when the sand enters your eyes.
Life has taught the lion the lesson he will not forget in a hurry. That no condition is permanent and that there is something that is called tomorrow which can turn somebody’s life upside down and even terminate it. We must act and think in a way that we can see tomorrow and look at it in the face. Remember that anybody can become sick anytime, can suddenly become poor, lose his job for no reason or be incapacitated in a road accident. At such times, the table do turn.

The trap-maker was not clever nor was he vigilant. He wasted to much time before coming to check on the trap. You don’t make a trap and go home and start sleeping. It could catch a big animal and if you are not around to clinically finish the job, you lose it all. We must be vigilant and follow up our all plans. The competition in the world is fierce and throat-cutting. You have to be sharp, clever and focused both at the beginning and at the end any master-plan you lay out. The spirit of ‘over-the-bar’ and disappointment has not been exterminated.
The mother-rat has taught us that you can achieve a lot with good sense, diligence and courage and not always with brute force, physical strength, size or even money.

Again, forgiveness and gratitude can go a long way in healing wounds and liberating our hindered minds. The mother-rat had forgiven the lion for nearly ending life for no reason and on top of that showed tremendous appreciation.
Did you get more lessons out of the story? Tell us your own.

From the Village Elder, Okenye

Ụkọchukwu Osebụrụwa