The Proud Bamboo Tree
James Oinam *
An illustration for 'The Proud Bamboo Tree '
Once upon a time, there lived a proud bamboo tree. He boasted to everyone he came across like this:
'I'm a grass
And I'm tall, tall, so tall
All of my cousins
All of them look small, small, so small
I'm a grass
And I'm green, green, so green
All of my brethren
They all call me evergreen
I'm a grass
And I grow fast, fast, so fast
Of all my brothers
I'm the only one who will outlast.'
A crow was passing by. The proud bamboo tree even made fun of her:
'Oh Mrs Crow, your feathers
They are black, black, so black
Have you been stealing from the kitchen rack?'
And he laughed at her. The crow decided to teach the proud bamboo a lesson. She replied:
'No Mr Bamboo
But you are proud, proud, so proud
I'll sit on you
And bend your twiny snout.'
Then Mrs Crow sat on the tall bamboo tree. Mother said from that day on the top of bamboo tree was bent forever. The bamboo tree has been repenting for his pride since then:
'I bow low, low, so low
I could see all my cousins below
I'm a grass
And I'm bent, bent, so bent
For pride, one has to repent.'
* James Oinam wrote this article for e-pao.net
The writer can be contacted at jamesoinam(AT)gmail(DOT)com
This article was webcasted on August 08, 2017.
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