The Tortoise And The Rabbit
Children's Story
"Stop it!" cried the tortoise as he tried to withdraw his head back into his shell. But it was difficult even to do that, for he was all tied around with hundreds and hundreds of words.
"What's the matter?" asked the rabbit in surprise.
"So many words!" complained the tortoise. "I'm all tangled up in them, and I can't move. I can't even think straight."
"Oh!" said the rabbit. "I'd better undo you then. What if I straighten out all the words and stretch them into a long line? What then? Would that be OK?"
The tortoise looked unconvinced, but he slowly nodded his grizzled head. The rabbit began to dance round him like quicksilver, pulling this way and that, unravelling word after word after word, until he had stretched them all out into a long string.
That was the trouble with the rabbit. He was much too fast for the tortoise, who could only stand and stare as the rabbit poured words all around him and rushed this way and that, trying to make the tortoise understand something he called "The Creed". Even when the words were all pulled out into a long, straight line, even then the rabbit was unable to keep still. The tortoise felt quite sick with the effort of trying to watch and listen.
"There now!" called the rabbit in a satisfied voice when the words were all arranged end to end and stretched as far as the furthest tree. "There now. Is that better?"
The tortoise looked at the long line stretching ahead of him and slowly began to plod his way from word to word. "It still doesn't make sense," he muttered as he tried to read each word in turn. "What does this mean - We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen...?"
He stared at all the words still waiting to be read, and shrivelled into his shell. "It's no good," he sighed. "I shall never be able to digest all this lot and understand what it means. It's no better than when it was all tangled round me. At least then it didn't seem quite so long. Now it goes on forever."
"Hmm," murmured the rabbit thoughtfully. He was so quick at reading and moving and understanding that he found it difficult to understand the tortoise. But he could see the tortoise had a problem, and he wanted to help. After all, in a way it was the rabbit's fault, for when he opened his mouth the words simply gushed out and jumbled themselves in all directions trying to make sense. But it wasn't in his nature to slow down, for he couldn't help being quick and agile.
Then the rabbit had an idea. "I know," he exclaimed. "Suppose I eat the words, digest them, and then allow just a very few words to issue from my mouth. Do you think that would work?"
The tortoise shrugged. He was losing interest in the words anyway. He decided he didn't much care about this "Creed". But he watched as the rabbit hopped nimbly from word to word, crunching and swallowing until the whole long line had disappeared.
Then the rabbit opened his mouth. "Jesus is Lord," he said.
"Well, why didn't you say so before?" answered the tortoise.
"What's the matter?" asked the rabbit in surprise.
"So many words!" complained the tortoise. "I'm all tangled up in them, and I can't move. I can't even think straight."
"Oh!" said the rabbit. "I'd better undo you then. What if I straighten out all the words and stretch them into a long line? What then? Would that be OK?"
The tortoise looked unconvinced, but he slowly nodded his grizzled head. The rabbit began to dance round him like quicksilver, pulling this way and that, unravelling word after word after word, until he had stretched them all out into a long string.
That was the trouble with the rabbit. He was much too fast for the tortoise, who could only stand and stare as the rabbit poured words all around him and rushed this way and that, trying to make the tortoise understand something he called "The Creed". Even when the words were all pulled out into a long, straight line, even then the rabbit was unable to keep still. The tortoise felt quite sick with the effort of trying to watch and listen.
"There now!" called the rabbit in a satisfied voice when the words were all arranged end to end and stretched as far as the furthest tree. "There now. Is that better?"
The tortoise looked at the long line stretching ahead of him and slowly began to plod his way from word to word. "It still doesn't make sense," he muttered as he tried to read each word in turn. "What does this mean - We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen...?"
He stared at all the words still waiting to be read, and shrivelled into his shell. "It's no good," he sighed. "I shall never be able to digest all this lot and understand what it means. It's no better than when it was all tangled round me. At least then it didn't seem quite so long. Now it goes on forever."
"Hmm," murmured the rabbit thoughtfully. He was so quick at reading and moving and understanding that he found it difficult to understand the tortoise. But he could see the tortoise had a problem, and he wanted to help. After all, in a way it was the rabbit's fault, for when he opened his mouth the words simply gushed out and jumbled themselves in all directions trying to make sense. But it wasn't in his nature to slow down, for he couldn't help being quick and agile.
Then the rabbit had an idea. "I know," he exclaimed. "Suppose I eat the words, digest them, and then allow just a very few words to issue from my mouth. Do you think that would work?"
The tortoise shrugged. He was losing interest in the words anyway. He decided he didn't much care about this "Creed". But he watched as the rabbit hopped nimbly from word to word, crunching and swallowing until the whole long line had disappeared.
Then the rabbit opened his mouth. "Jesus is Lord," he said.
"Well, why didn't you say so before?" answered the tortoise.
