One day, a colt took a bag of wheat to the mill. As he was running with the bag on his back, he came to a small river. The colt could not decide whether he could cross it. Looking around, he saw a cow grazing nearby. He asked, “Aunt Cow, could you tell me if I can cross the river?” The cow told him that he could and that the river was not very deep, just knee high.
The colt was crossing the river when a squirrel jumped down fron a tree and stopped him. The squirrel shouted, “Colt, stop! You’ll drown! One of my friends drowned just yesterday in the river.” Not knowing what to do, the colt went home to consult his mum.
He told his mum his experience on the way. His mother said, “My child, don’t always listen to others. You’d better go and try yourself. Then you’ll know what to do.”
Later, at the river,the squirrel stopped the colt again. “Little horse, it’s too dangerous!” “No, I want to try myself,” answered the colt.Then he crossed the river carefully.
Real knowledge comes from practice.
Friend in Need Is a Friend Indeed
Jack and Ben are good friends. One day, they explore a forest together. When they go deep into the forest, suddenly they hear a sound. “What’s that? The sound is so terrible.” Ben says.
“Oh! Bear! Look! A bear!” Jack says and climbs quickly on a tall tree.
Ben tries to climb on the tree. But he can’t. “What can I do? Help me please! “Ben says to Jack. But Jack does nothing.
The bear is coming. Ben lies down quickly and pretends to die. The bear looks at Ben and walking around him. Ben holds his breath. The bear smells Ben and thinks he’s dying, and then the bear goes away.
When Jack sees the bear going far, he slides down from the tree and wakes Ben. “What did the Bear whisper to you?” Jack asks Ben.
“Why didn’t you help me? Have you not heard the sentence: A friend in need is a friend indeed?” Ben shouted.
It said to a turtle that lived in the East Sea, "I am so happy! When I go out, I jump about on the railing beside the mouth of the well. When I come home, I rest in the holes on the broken wall of the well. If I jump into the water, it comes up to my armpits and holds up my cheeks. If I walk in the mud, it covers up my feet. I look around at the wriggly worms, crabs and tadpoles, and none of them can compare with me. Moreover, I am lord of this trough of water and I stand up tall in this shallow well. My happiness is full. My dear sir, why don't you come often and look around my place?"
Before the turtle from the East Sea could get its left foot in the well, its right knee got stuck. It hesitated and retreated. The turtle told the frog about the East Sea. "Even a distance of a thousand li cannot give you an idea of the sea's width; even a height of a thousand ren cannot give you an idea of its depth. In the time of King Yu of the Xia dynasty, there were floods nine years out of ten, but the waters in the sea did not increase. ln the time of King Tang of the Shang dynasty there were droughts seven years out of eight, but the waters in the sea did not decrease. The sea does not change along with the passage of time and its level does not rise or fall according to the amount of rain that falls.
The greatest happiness is to live in the East Sea."
After listening to these words, the frog of the shallow well was shocked into realization of his own insignificance and became very ill at ease.