The Monkey and the Crocodile

The Monkey and the Crocodile

On the bank of a wide, warm river stood a great tree. Its branches bent almost down to the water, and sweet fruit ripened among its thick leaves.

A clever monkey lived in that tree. She knew every twig, every knot in the wood, and every path through the leaves. When the sun rose above the river, she ate ripe fruit for breakfast, then sat for a long time on the highest branch and watched the water gleam below.

Crocodiles lived in the river.

One day, a young crocodile swam up to the tree and heard the monkey speaking to herself.

“How I would love to visit that island in the middle of the river! They say the fruit there is even sweeter.”

The crocodile lifted his head.

“I can carry you there,” he said. “Sit on my back.”

The monkey was surprised.

“You really will not throw me off?”

“Why would I?” the crocodile replied. “I swim well. And you can show me where the tastiest fruit grows.”

The monkey very much wanted to see the island. She climbed down, carefully jumped onto the crocodile’s back, and off they went.

At first, everything was wonderful. The water lapped softly, the wind stirred the leaves on the shore, and the monkey was delighted by the new adventure.

But in the middle of the river, the crocodile suddenly dived.

“Hey!” cried the monkey when they surfaced again. “I am not a fish! At least warn me!”

The crocodile said nothing.

“What is wrong?” the monkey asked warily.

Then the crocodile confessed.

“My mother heard about you and decided that a monkey’s heart has special power. She ordered me to bring you to her. Forgive me, but that is why I invited you on this journey.”

Everything inside the monkey turned cold. But she did not scream or beg. Instead, she thoughtfully scratched her chin.

“So you need my heart?” she asked.

“Yes.”

“Oh, Crocodile! Why did you not say so at once?”

The crocodile was confused.

“What do you mean?”

“I left my heart in the tree.”

“You left it?”

“Of course,” said the monkey solemnly. “Do you not know that when monkeys take a long journey, they hide their hearts in a safe place? Mine is in a hollow on the highest branch. If you had warned me, I would have brought it.”

The crocodile was not very clever, and he believed her.

“Then we must go back!”

“Certainly,” said the monkey. “Otherwise this whole journey is useless.”

The crocodile turned around and swam back.

As soon as his back touched the shore, the monkey leaped to the roots, climbed the trunk in an instant, and disappeared among the leaves.

The crocodile waited.

“Well?” he called. “Where is your heart?”

Laughter came from the top of the tree.

“My heart is where everyone else’s is, Crocodile! Who leaves a heart on a branch? You tried to trick me, and I tricked you. Swim home and tell your mother that friendship does not begin with a trap.”

Ashamed, the crocodile lowered his snout into the water and swam away.

After that, the monkey moved a little farther downstream. She found another tree, even more splendid than the first. Opposite it lay an island with fruit trees, and between the shore and the island a great rock rose from the water.

The monkey quickly learned to jump from the shore to the rock, and from the rock to the island.

Time passed. One evening, she was returning home after a whole day on the island when she suddenly noticed that the rock looked strange. It seemed taller.

The monkey stopped.

“How curious,” she thought. “Rocks do not grow in one day.”

Then she guessed that the same crocodile was hiding on the rock.

But the monkey decided to make sure.

“Good evening, Rock!” she called loudly.

Silence.

“Rock, why are you quiet today? Usually you always answer me!”

The crocodile heard this and thought, “So the rock answers her. If I stay silent, she will suspect something.”

In a rough voice, he said, “Good evening, Monkey!”

The monkey could barely keep from laughing.

“Aha! It is you, Crocodile.”

“It is,” he grumbled. “And this time you will not escape me. There is no other way to the shore.”

The monkey looked at the dark water, at the crocodile, and then said cheerfully, “All right. You win. Open your mouth wider, and I will jump straight into it.”

The crocodile was delighted and opened his mouth as wide as he could.

But when crocodiles open their mouths very wide, it is hard for them to see clearly what is happening right in front of their noses.

The monkey ran, jumped not into his mouth but right onto his head, pushed off, and with one great leap landed on the shore.

A moment later, she was sitting in the tree.

The crocodile stared upward for a long time.

At last he said, “You have outwitted me twice. I will not chase you anymore.”

“That is a wise decision,” the monkey replied. “An even wiser one is not to deceive someone who trusts you.”

From then on, the crocodile kept his word.

And the monkey continued to jump to the island for sweet fruit. Only now, before stepping onto the rock, she always looked carefully to see whether it had suddenly grown during the night.

For cleverness helps a person escape trouble, but caution often keeps them from falling into it in the first place.

May this story leave a little light in your heart ✨