Anansi and the Turtle
Traditional | West Africa
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Once upon a time, there was a clever spider named Anansi. Anansi was mischievous and loved to play tricks on others. One day, he cooked a big pot of yummy yam soup that smelled absolutely delicious.
As Anansi was enjoying the smell of his soup, a turtle happened to pass by. The turtle followed the delightful smell and found Anansi's house. Anansi, being sly, said to the turtle, "Hello, Mr. Turtle! You look tired from your journey. Would you like to join me for some delicious yam soup?"
The turtle, who was very hungry, happily accepted the invitation. But Anansi didn't really want to share his soup. So, he came up with a plan. He told the turtle, "Before we eat, we must wash our hands. It's a tradition in my house." The turtle agreed and went to the nearby stream to wash his hands.
When the turtle returned, Anansi had already started eating. He pretended to be surprised and said, "Oh, Mr. Turtle, your hands are still dirty. Please go wash them again." The turtle, being slow-moving, went back to the stream and washed his hands once more.
This happened again and again. Every time the turtle returned, Anansi had eaten more of the soup. Poor Mr. Turtle didn't get a single bite! Anansi continued this trick until he had finished all the soup. He looked at the empty pot and then at the turtle, pretending to be sorry. But he didn't really sound sorry at all.
The turtle looked at the empty pot and then at Anansi. He calmly said, "That's okay, Anansi. I would like to invite you to dinner at my house tomorrow." Anansi eagerly agreed, thinking he would get another delicious meal.
The next day, Anansi went to the turtle's house, which was underwater in the river. The turtle said, "Before we eat, we must take a bath." Anansi, excited about the meal, jumped into the river to take a bath.
But spiders can't swim or dive like turtles! Anansi struggled and splashed in the water, but he couldn't reach the turtle's house at the bottom of the river. Meanwhile, the turtle enjoyed his meal in peace.
Finally, Anansi crawled out of the water, all wet and hungry. He realized he couldn't outsmart the turtle this time. From that day on, Anansi learned to think twice before playing tricks on his friends.
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