VERSION 2: The Hare and the Tortoise

 The Rematch

"Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall." (Proverbs 16:18) 

A boastful hare, who once thought of himself as a fast animal, belittled the tortoise for being such a slow creature. One day, the tortoise challenged the hare to a race. The slothful hare took a nap halfway through the route towards the finish line. The tortoise eventually caught up to the hare, emerging as the winner and defeating the hare, who suddenly realised that he had been left far behind when it was already too late. In the end, the hare felt ashamed of himself.

Soon, the sensational news about the hare’s defeat caught every animal’s attention in the forest. The tortoise was showered with congratulatory messages and the rip-roaring celebrations of the tortoise’s victory made the once boastful hare shy away from the world apart from his own hare clan.

Hiding in his dark burrow, he wondered, “Why does everyone celebrate my defeat? There must be something wrong with me.”

“Indeed, something is terribly wrong with you Harris!” said Harko, the boastful hare’s brother. “We are bestowed the gift of speed and agility to escape predators. Why did you use your natural gift to belittle others? You’ve just made a fool of yourself and our family.” 

Harko’s reprimand continuously rang in Harris’ head.

Weeks passed and the news of the eventful race between the hare and the tortoise was soon forgotten. The new spring has come and the hare faced the world with a humble spirit. Resting by the river bank, he met Torty (the tortoise) basking lazily in the sun. 

“Hello Harris,” said Torty.

Surprised by the tortoise’s friendly gesture, he replied sheepishly, “Hi Torty…” 

The giant 50-year-old tortoise lifted his neck and approached Harris in slow, steady steps. “What a bright sunny morning! Shall we have a race?” 

Harris twitched his long-pointed ears in excitement and immediately welcomed the friendly challenge. The race began and it was an effortless victory for Harris. 

“A hare will always be faster than a tortoise and a tortoise will never outrun a hare in a race,” Torty smiled as he continued walking steadily towards the finish line to meet Harris. “However, pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall. I’d predicted your fall in the first race because of your arrogance. But you are now a humble hare who will be loved by everyone.” 

Ever since then, Torty’s wise words sank deep in Harris’ heart and they became best friends.

Written by: Grace Wong Mei Yen

VERSION 1: The Hare and the Tortoise

When I was a young child, I was fascinated by this Aesop fable. I believe many children and adults have read or heard of this story, summarised as follows:

A boastful hare, who once thought of himself as a fast animal, belittled the tortoise for being such a slow creature. One day, the tortoise challenged the hare to a race. The slothful hare took a nap halfway through the route towards the finish line. The tortoise eventually caught up to the hare, emerging as the winner and defeating the hare, who suddenly realised that he had been left far behind when it was already too late. In the end, the hare felt ashamed of himself.

There are several lessons that can be derived from this simple Aesop fable and perhaps the most common one is ‘Slow and steady wins the race’.

The story of the Hare and Tortoise encourages people from all walks of life to be diligent and meek. With much grit and persistence to be successful, we would eventually reach our desired goals– as portrayed by the character of the tortoise.

However, life often takes an unexpected turn and the generalisation of such assumptions requires further evaluation. Have you ever had an experience of working really hard for something, only to realise that you still can’t be compared to some of your peers who seem to be better than you?

Comparing oneself with others is an unavoidable phenomenon and people do this very often; sometimes silently within their hearts or overtly expressing feelings of jealousy about the success of others.

This Aesop fable presents a profound moral lesson of hard work which is worthy of emulation.
Having said that, I would like to invite my readers to contemplate on several aspects of this story if it was retold by another storyteller and presented in different angles, of which I wish to present to inspire and entertain both the young and old.

Written by: Grace Wong Mei Yen 🌷