Thursday’s Tale: The Stag at the Pool

How about one of Aesop’s fables today? “The Stag at the Pool” is about a stag who learns a lesson the hard way.

A stag stopped at a spring to get a drink.  He saw his shadow in the water and admired the size of his horns but felt angry with himself because his feet were so slender and weak.  While he was looking at his reflections, a lion appeared and crouched, ready to attack the stag. The stag immediately started running at top speed and as long as the plain was smooth and open, he kept a safe distance from the lion. But then the stag entered a wood and got his horns entangled in the trees.  The lion caught him. Too late, the stag realized that his feet which he disliked could have saved him, but his beautiful horns caused his death.

Morale: What is most truly valuable is often underrated.

Hmmm – I wonder if I’m underrating my height? I’d probably fit right under those branches.

Thursday’s Tales is a weekly event here at Carol’s Notebook. Fairy tales, folktales, tall tales, even re-tellings, I love them all.