Far away from here, on top of a steep mountain of the Andes mountain range, lived an eagle that spent the day scanning the horizon in search of prey.
One boring morning, with his powerful dark eyes, he saw a mouse running nervously on the dry land. He flapped his wings tightly, took flight and stood beside him before the animal could react.
- Hello, mouse! Can I know what you are doing? You do not stop moving from here to there!
The rodent was very scared to see the giant body of the eagle in front of him, but pretended to be calm to pretend that he felt no hint of fear.
- I do not do anything bad. I’m just looking for food for my children.
Actually the eagle cared very little about the life of the mouse. The greeting was not for education or personal interest, but to gain their confidence and to catch it easily. It was hot and I did not feel like doing too much effort!
As he already had it within reach, he said bluntly:
- Well, I’m sorry for you, but I’m very hungry and I’m going to eat you right now.
The little mouse felt a nasty cramp running through his body. He had to escape as he was, but his chances were minimal because the eagle was much bigger and stronger than him. He had only one resource left to try to save his life: ingenuity.
Steeling himself, he took out his chest and raised his voice.
- Listen to me carefully, I propose a deal! You do not eat me but in exchange I give you my eight children.
The eagle remained pensive for a few seconds. The offer seemed quite advantageous to her!
- Your children? … And you say there are eight?
- Yes, eight are! I did not think about it too much, because you clearly win, do not you think?
The eagle could gluttony and above all, greed.
- It’s okay … I accept, I accept! Take me to your young immediately! Also, I have not tasted anything for hours and if I do not eat something, I’m going to faint.
The mouse, sweating in jets but trying to remain calm, began to walk followed by the eagle, which was close on his heels and did not take his eyes off. When he reached a little cave the size of a fist, he said:
- You’re too big to enter my house. Wait out here, that right now I bring you my little ones.
- Okay, but you better not delay.
The mouse stuck its head in the dark hole and disappeared underground. A few minutes passed and the eagle began to worry because the mouse did not return.
- Come on, damn rodent! Hurry, I do not have all day!
The eagle stood still in front of the mole for almost an hour and tired of waiting, he realized that the mouse had mocked her. He put his eye to the hole and, thanks to his good sight, he saw a deep tunnel that communicated with a lot of kilometer-long galleries, each one in one direction.
- This mouse has fled with its young through one of the passages! He has mocked me!
Annoyed with herself and embarrassed for not having been smarter, she lamented:
- That happens to me because of greed! I had to have eaten the mouse!
This was how the cunning little mouse managed to save his life and take his beloved family away, while the eagle had to return to the top of the mountain on an empty stomach.
Moral: This fabulilla teaches us that sometimes the desire to have more than we need makes us end up with nothing. Always remember what the old saying goes: “Better a bird in hand than a hundred flying”