A so- called- rich Mouse once went on a visit to his cousin the so- called- poor mouse whose home was in the fields. His cousin gave him heart warming welcome and offered him all the best food he could find—beans, peas, and crusts of bread. The rich Mouse picked a little here and there, but it was clear that he did not enjoy the simple meal.
“Cousin,” he finally said, “I don’t understand how you put up with such dull food. But of course you can’t expect anything better with your present state. Come home with me, and when you have live there for a week, you will never want to come back here.” The two set out for the city to the rich mouse place that very evening and arrived late at night.
“You must be tired and hungry after your long journey,” said the rich Mouse, and took his guest at once into a grand dining room where they found the remains of a fine feast —all kinds of meats, cheeses, cakes, jellies and other dainties.
The dazzled poor Mouse was just trying to decide which tempting morsel to eat first, when the door opened, and in came a servant with a cloche. Both mice scampered off and hid until he left the room. When all was quiet again, they went back to their supper. But hardly had the poor Mouse swallowed his first mouthful, than he heard a terrific growling and barking two huge dogs bounded into the room. Half frightened to death, he ran down from the table and into a hole where he had seen the rich Mouse disappearing.
“Good-bye, Cousin,” said the poor Mouse.
“What, going so soon?” said the other.
“Yes,” he replied, “I seem to have lost my appetite.”
Moral of the story: A crust of bread in peace is better than a feast in fear.
In a world full of varied people, having their own interests and aspirations, we find it difficult to not engage in confrontations with anyone, in-person or online. This is a waste of time and energy. Better is a dish of vegetables where there is love than a fattened cake with hatred. The greatest challenge in life is to be our own person and accept that being different is a blessing and not a curse. A person who knows who they are lives a simple life by eliminating from their orbit anything that does not align with his or her overriding purpose and values. A person must be selective with their time and energy because both elements of life are limited. Sooner or later we realize that we need the simple things in life: A comfortable home to live in, good food on the table and to be surrounded y people who love us. So go ahead, Take action. Discover how to live a simple life. A better life! You deserve it!
Meanings and explanations on words used in the story:
- Loss of appetite means you don’t have the same desire to eat as you used to. Signs of decreased appetite include not wanting to eat, unintentional weight loss, and not feeling hungry.
- Cousin: The son or daughter of a person’s uncle or aunt
- Heartwarming welcome: a welcome that causes you to feel happy
- Dull food: food can taste unappealingly bland or flavorless, or just plain.
- Morsel: a bite, mouthful, or small portion of food
- Growling and barking: all dogs will pair barks and growls to scare things away
- Bounded: walk or run with leaping strides.
- Half frightened to death: to be very scared