The Fox without a Tail
A fox once escaped from a trap by biting off his tail and leaving it behind. A t the time he was so relieve to be free again that he thought nothing of it. But as it healed he began to realize how odd he looked without it.
“I would almost rather be dead than look this,” he said. “Everyone will laugh at me.”
Then he had an idea. He invited all the other foxes to come to an important meeting. When they were all sitting down, with their thick bushy tails curled comfortably round their paws, he began to speak.
“I expect you are wondering how I manage without my tail,” he said to them. “The truth is that you just would not believe how much better I feel now than I did before. I can move more quickly, I never have to bother with getting brambles out of it all the time –and I don’t get caught in traps. If I had not tired it for myself I would not have believed it either, but when you come to think of it a tail is just an ugly. Inconvenient bit of extra weight. The wonder is that we foxes have put up with them for so long.”
“Take my advice and have your tails cut off too. It could change your whole life.”
When he had finished, an old fox stood up.
“I rather think, ” he said, “that you would not be standing there telling us to get our tails cut off if there were any chance of you getting yours back again . ”
If you can’t have something, don’t pretend you are better off without it.