Anansi Goes Fishing
Anansi the spider loved to eat but hated to work. One day, he noticed his neighbor, Turtle, returning every evening with a basket full of fish. “How do you manage to catch so many fish every day?” Anansi asked, his mouth watering at the sight.
Turtle smiled, “I go fishing. It’s a combination of patience and skill.”
Anansi, always looking for a way to get food without working hard for it, came up with a plan. “How about we go fishing together tomorrow? I’ll teach you one of my tricks, and you teach me how to fish.”
Turtle, knowing Anansi’s cunning nature but always up for some fun, agreed.
The next morning, Anansi showed Turtle a silly song and dance. “That’s my trick,” Anansi said proudly. Now it was Turtle’s turn to teach Anansi how to fish.
They went to the river, and Turtle gave Anansi a fishing pole. “The key is patience,” Turtle explained. “You must wait quietly for the fish to come to you.”
However, Anansi was not one for waiting. Every few minutes, he’d pull his line out of the water to check for fish. He’d shout in frustration, scaring all the fish away, while Turtle sat calmly, waiting.
Hours passed. Turtle’s basket slowly filled with fish, while Anansi’s remained empty. Growing impatient and hungry, Anansi decided to use his ‘trick’. He began singing and dancing loudly, hoping the fish would be drawn to the noise. But the opposite happened. The few fish that were around swam away in fright.
By the end of the day, Anansi had not caught a single fish. Exhausted and embarrassed, he turned to Turtle, “I don’t understand. Why didn’t my trick work?”
Turtle chuckled, “Anansi, not every trick works for every situation. When it comes to fishing, patience is the best trick of all.”
Moral: There’s no substitute for patience and the right technique in the appropriate situation.