Story The black tiger and the white deer: adaptation of the popular Brazilian fable.
Many years ago there lived in the Amazon jungle a beautiful black tiger and a beautiful white deer.
Neither of them had a home so they lived their lives outdoors and slept protected by the blanket of stars at night.
As time went by, the deer began to miss sheltering under cover and decided to build a cabin. Very excited about the project, he chose a clearing in the forest and planned the work well.
– My first objective will be to nibble the grass until the ground is very smooth. Without good foundations there is no house that will resist!
He worked hard all day, and when he saw that he had accomplished his purpose, he lay down to sleep on a bed of flowers.
Little did he know that the black tiger, also tired of living outdoors, had had the same idea that day and had coincidentally chosen the same place to build his home!
– I’m fed up with getting wet when it rains and scorching under the sun in the summer months! I will make a small but very comfortable cabin for my use and enjoyment. It will be great!
He arrived at the clearing in the forest just as the moon was rising and was surprised to see that there were no weeds on the ground.
– Wow, how strange!… I know this place well and it has always been covered in weeds… It must have been the god Tulpa who wanted to help me and smoothed it out for me. Well, that will make it easier for me! I’ll start building right now!
Without wasting time he got to work; He took sticks and stones and placed them on the ground to create a firm and resistant soil. When he finished, he headed to the river to take a refreshing bath.
In the morning, the deer returned to continue the task and was amazed!
– Oops! How is it possible that the floor of the cabin is already laid?!… I guess the god Tulpa did it to help me out. It’s fantastic!
Very happy, he dedicated himself to dragging logs to raise the walls of the rooms. He worked tirelessly and when it started to get dark he went to get something for dinner. He wanted to go to bed early so he could get up early!
Late at night, the black tiger arrived. Like all felines, he saw very well in the dark and working without light was not a problem for him.
His jaw dropped when he saw the walls standing perfectly above the ground forming a perfect square!
– But how wonderful!… The god Tulpa has helped me again and has built the walls for me! As soon as I put the roof up, I’ll call it finished.
He placed large branches from side to side on the walls and then covered them with leaves.
– The roof is now ready and the cabin is perfect! Anyway, I think I’ve earned a good rest… I’m going to open my new room!
Yawning, he entered one of the two rooms and lay down comfortably until sleep overcame him. He was a very sleepy animal, so he did not find out about the arrival of the deer at dawn nor could he see the surprised face on his face when he saw the work completely finished.
– Oh, god Tulpa! But how generous you are! You laid the roof overnight! Thank you very much, I love my new cabin!
Happy as a partridge he entered the empty room and also fell asleep.
At noon the sun rose to the highest point in the sky and woke up the two animals with its intense rays of light; They both stretched, left their room at the same time and… they found themselves face to face!
The scare they got was horrendous! One and the other stood as if frozen, looking at each other with their faces contorted and their hair standing like spikes. After all, they were natural enemies and they were under the same roof!
Neither attacked the other; They simply remained for a long time observing each other until they realized what had happened. Without knowing it, they had made the cabin between the two of them!
The deer, trying to remain calm, said to the black tiger:
– I see that you are as surprised as I am, but since we have the same right to this home, what do you think if we share it?
– It seems fair and very practical to me! If you want, every day one of us will go hunting to bring food home. Is that okay with you?
– I think it’s a fantastic idea! Meanwhile, the other can take care of doing daily chores like dusting and sweeping.
They shook their paws to seal the agreement and began to live together enthusiastically and full of good intentions.
The first thing to do was get food and by drawing lots he had to go out and hunt the tiger. He returned an hour later with a prey that the deer did not like at all because it was a deer… a white deer like him!
– What an unpleasant situation, tiger friend! This animal is of the same species as me and as you will understand, I am not going to try it.
He went to his room upset and couldn’t sleep a wink.
– “Oh, how uneasy I feel! The black tiger has hunted a deer like me… It’s terrible! “What if one day he decides to attack me?”
The poor guy couldn’t fall asleep all night but he got up at dawn because it was his turn to go out and look for food.
He walked around for a while and met some friends who helped him set up a trap to catch a tiger. When he came home with the trophy, his partner was speechless and of course refused to sink her teeth into it.
– Do you expect me, who am a tiger, to eat another tiger? No kidding, I’m incapable!
As he said this, he went to his room with a nervousness that he could not control.
– “This deer seems fragile but it has been able to hunt a tiger my size. What if it attacks me while I sleep? I should not trust that appearances are deceiving and I am a fool and have nothing.”
Silence and darkness took over the forest. All the animals slept peacefully except the deer and the tiger, which spent the night awake and alert because none of them trusted the other.
When no one was expecting it, around five in the morning, a deafening noise was heard:
BOOOOOOOM!
The two were so scared and tense that when they heard the noise they ran away in opposite directions, without stopping to check where the sound was coming from. Both of them ran away thinking that their friend wanted to attack them.
The beautiful black tiger and the gorgeous white deer never met again because they both made sure to stay well away from their possible enemy.
The tiger tried to rebuild his life in the northern area, but he always felt sadder than usual because he missed the deer.
– What a shame to end like this! The truth is that we got along very well and I would never have hurt him but of course… I can’t say the same about him!
For its part, at the other end of the forest, in the southern area, the deer lamented incessantly:
– How nice the black tiger was! We were a great team and we could have been great friends… I would never have hurt him but maybe he would hurt me and it’s better to be safe.
And that’s how each one had to look for a clearing in the forest again to make a new cabin, this time with a single room.
Moral: If the tiger and the deer had talked instead of distrusting each other, they would have discovered that neither of them had anything to fear because they were both trustworthy and liked each other.
This story teaches us that our best weapon is the word. Telling what we feel or what worries us to our friends is the best way to live calmly and confidently.