Traditional | Nigeria
The Tortoise and His Children
A wise old Tortoise teaches his children the importance of honesty and not taking what isn't theirs, but later contradicts his own teachings.
Once upon a time in a happy place, there lived a wise old tortoise and his children. One day, the tortoise gathered his children and said, "My dear ones, remember two important things - never take what isn't yours, and always tell the truth."
His children nodded and said, "We understand, Father."
But soon, a big problem happened. There was very little food in the land, and everyone was hungry. For three days, the tortoise's family had no food to eat. Feeling desperate, the tortoise decided to steal food from their neighbors.
He came back home with a big bag of food and told his children, "Look, little ones! I found this food in the forest."
However, his children were smart. They knew their father had not gone into the forest. They knew he had taken the food from their neighbors. They asked him, "Father, you told us never to take what isn't ours and to always tell the truth."
The tortoise was surprised and said, "Who is the teacher here? You or me?!"
The children learned a hard lesson that day. They saw how stealing made their father lie and how it caused trouble. They understood why it was important to be honest and never to steal. From then on, they promised themselves never to follow their father's bad example and to always do the right thing.
