Author Information
The Not So Great Lion
The Not So Great Lion
Ricardo Pérez Castillo A01281092
Cyntia Reyes Rodríguez A00811910
One sunny day, a small and sad lion was lying on his threshold wondering what he needed to do to accomplish perfectness and supreme happiness. Not long after awhile he realized about the qualities he lacked, among them were: strength, intelligence, beauty, and love. The he thought about what he needed to do to achieve all these things he wanted so bad, and while thinking this, two small lovebirds flying around a tree caught his attention, he saw how the birds were meant to be one for each other, and both seemed very happy to enjoy each other’s company. The lion turned his head to the right, then to the left, and realized he was completely lonely. With enthusiasm the lion said “hey little birds, come here, I’ve got something to show you” and so the birds came and said “what is it?” and in a matter of seconds the lion catch the birds with his big claws and then proceed to eat them both. After eating them, the lion thought he would get the true love the birds had, but he was still lonely and loveless. Disappointed walking through the savanna, he came across a parade, among them; a really big and strong elephant caught his instant attention. The elephant was busy trying to get food from a tree and all of the sudden; he destroyed a whole tree with a slight movement of this trunk. The lion desired his strength. Lion was thinking about the wonders he could make by having that tremendous strength, also felt that the rest of the animals will respect and fear him even more; so he killed the elephant and ate him too. It took him 4 weeks to finish the big elephant meal but even after, he didn’t feel any stronger. Angry and disappointed he continued his way back home. In the middle of the way, he encountered a tower of giraffes, and his eyes couldn’t believe the prettiness from one of the young giraffes, for a second he felt in paradise, it was a delight to watch the giraffe but at the same time, bothered him, because he desired it, he desire that beauty. Whispering he called the young giraffe, and said, “Little giraffe, you forgot your berries here” and so when the giraffe came, the lion attacked and killed the poor giraffe within seconds, this time, he ate it in just minutes. The lion was so sure that this time it had worked, and that now he was just as beautiful as the giraffe so he went to look for a river to watch his reflection. At the border of the river, a shrewdness of apes were fishing with sticks and stones and the lion forget about his reflection, instead he admired their intelligence, he approached to an ape and this one said:
“Stop, please don’t kill me”
“Yes, I will. I need your intelligence”
“You won’t acquire it from killing and eating me”
“Yes, I will”
“No, you won’t. If you want to be smart, I can teach you what I know”
“I will eat you, it’ll be easier”
“Things are not that easy, we must work to be what we aspire to become and if it’s not possible to achieve it, you need to accept yourself just as you are, be your true self”
The lion didn’t listen and killed it.
The lion’s ambitious grew exponentially.
And one day he realized he had killed and eaten the whole world. Now it was gone. Not a single living thing. And yet, he was still the same ambitious, lonely and loveliness lion he always had been.
Moral:
There may be some desire for perfection inside us, however the gifts that we do not own we must work them out and improve them over time. We can't let ambition seizes us destroying friendships and relationships in their path. Be faithful to yourself, love yourself.
