Aesop

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Retold by The Legendary Connection

TLC#00041

One day, a Hare was teasing a Tortoise for being so slow. “How do you ever get anywhere, moving at that pace?” the Hare laughed. “You’ll never be as fast as me!”

The Tortoise, though calm and patient, replied, “Maybe I’m slow, but I bet I could beat you in a race.”

The Hare burst out laughing. “You? Beat me? That’s impossible!” he said. But feeling amused by the idea, he agreed to the race. They asked a wise Fox to set up the course and be the judge.

On the day of the race, the Tortoise and the Hare stood side by side at the starting line. “Ready, set, go!” shouted the Fox, and off they went.

The Hare sped off so quickly that soon he was far, far ahead of the Tortoise. He looked back and saw the Tortoise plodding along slowly, just as he expected. “That slowpoke will never catch up to me,” thought the Hare. “I’ve got time to rest.”

So, the Hare found a nice shady spot under a tree, lay down, and quickly fell asleep. Meanwhile, the Tortoise kept moving at his steady pace. Step by step, he kept going, never stopping, never hurrying.

As the sun moved across the sky, the Tortoise slowly got closer to the finish line. All this time, the Hare was still fast asleep, confident that he could easily win whenever he woke up.

At last, the Hare woke with a jolt. “Oh no! How long have I been sleeping?” he cried. He jumped up and raced toward the finish line as fast as he could. But when he got there, he was too late. To his great surprise, the Tortoise was already there, crossing the finish line!

The Fox declared, “The Tortoise is the winner!”

The Hare couldn’t believe it. “How could this happen? I’m the fastest animal in the forest!”

The Tortoise smiled kindly and said, “You may be fast, but I kept going. Slow and steady wins the race.”

Original Source: Aesop, 621? BCE-565? BCE. “Aesop’s Fables; a New Translation.” Https://Www.gutenberg.org/Files/11339/11339-h/11339-H.htm, 25 Mar. 2023, www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/11339/pg11339-images.html#THE_HARE_AND_THE_TORTOISE. Accessed 31 Jan. 2024.