The Fox and the Stork

The fox was the biggest joker in the forest. One day he invited the stork to dinner. "I've made you a delicious soup," he said. The stork came along happily.

The fox served the soup on a flat, shallow plate. He himself lapped it up in no time. The stork, with her long thin beak, tried and tried but could not take a single sip. Her beak tapped against the plate while the soup stayed at the bottom. The fox watched and giggled: "Didn't you like it? It was very tasty!"

The stork did not get angry at all. She smiled and said: "Thank you very much, Brother Fox. Tomorrow evening you must come to me, and I will cook for you."

The next day, his stomach rumbling, the fox went to the stork's house. A wonderful smell of fish filled the air. The stork had served the meal in two tall jars with long narrow necks. She dipped her beak into the jar and ate the fish with relish. The fox tried to push his nose into the jar, stretched out his tongue, licked the jar... He could not get a single piece.

The stork asked politely: "Didn't you like it, Brother Fox? It was very tasty!"

At that moment the fox remembered his trick from the day before and turned bright red. He went home with his tail drooping. On the way he muttered to himself: "Whatever I did to her, she did right back to me. It wasn't nice at all."

From that day on, the fox never played a mean trick on anyone again. Because he understood that whatever you do to others comes back to you one day, like a jar full of fish.