fables and narratives

The Hare and the Tortoise
Aesop’s fable “The Tortoise and the Hare” tells of an egotistical rabbit who boast about being the swiftest runner among all the animals; challenging all the other animals to race against him. To the rabbit’s surprise a seemingly lowly turtle accepts the challenge to race. The rabbit seems to find the turtle’s statement amusing and decides to race the turtle; thinking the turtle was no real competition. By standers gawked trying to dissuade the turtle who is committed to racing the rabbit regardless of the seeming imbalance and unfavorable odds. As the race begins, the rabbit makes the most of on his physical prowess and seamlessly advances beyond the turtle. Overvaluing this advantage, when the finish line on sight, the rabbit decides that he can rest and still win the race. During this break, the slow-moving turtle continued to move toward the finish line inching his way past the snoozing rabbit. Awaking from his rest, the rabbit soon realizes that the turtle has passed him and is approaching the finish line. Now frantic, the rabbit exerts all his energy to try to catch and move pass the turtle; in an effort to win the race. Unfazed, the turtle continues to inch forward toward the finish line; ever constant in pace and determination. As the hurried rabbit nears, the underestimated turtle victoriously crosses the finish line first, much to everyone’s surprise.

The moral of the story is the age old adage “slow and steady wins the race”. Regardless to how good we consider ourselves or how fast we might be able to accomplish a task, we should not be overly confident in our abilities. But continue to work hard to excel and not get relaxed, as we could easily be surpassed by someone who is equally as committed and willing to put forth steady effort.

There are many lessons in “The Tortoise and Hare”. One may glean that consistent and strategic efforts, regardless of the pace, will ultimately lead you to your goal. While another may