Week 1 Storytelling: The Old Lion and the Fox

The Old Lion and the Fox, a retelling
An wise old Lion sat alone in his cave. He sat alone because he had left his Pride many years ago. Lion had always been the best hunter in his Pride, yet others always ate his food. One day Lion left, he decided it was better to fare for himself than to live and travel with those freeloader. “Bah, I have to do all the work” thought Lion.

Many things change over the years, and age has a way of catching up to you. “I am too old to hunt,” thought Lion, “but I no longer have a Pride to hunt for me.” Lion was hungry, but he was also clever and would not give up so easily.

“My claws are not sharp, I am no longer fast, and I do not have the energy to chase prey,” reflected Lion. He thought hard for a long while. After several days his stomach grew emptier and rumbly. Finally, Lion thought of an Idea.

Lion told the other animals that he was sick. He then returned to his cave, laid down and waited. Most of the animals in the Forest were kind, and and they felt sorry for Lion.

First came Rabbit. Rabbit was a healer who had studied plants and herbs. She brought with her a tea from her own recipe. She hopped up to the cave and offered Lion the tea. Instead, Lion ate Rabbit. “A fine meal,” he said, “but I am still hungry.”

Second came Deer. Deer was a weaver. She took the silk from the silkworms and spun it into blankets. She brought with her a blanket that she herself had woven. Deer pranced up to the cave and draped the blanket over Lion. Lion did not even thank her before he ate her. “A fine meal,” he said, “but I am still a little hungry.”

(illustration by Milo Winter)

Third came Fox. Fox was a bard who decided he would sing sweet melodies so that Lion would be able to sleep and heal. Fox was clever, and did not get close the the cave and started to play his songs at a distance. “Come closer,” said Lion, “so that I may better hear your sweet voice.”

Fox looked at the footsteps near the cave, and saw that they only went in one direction. The footsteps entered the cave, and never left. Fox had an idea. He started to sing songs of Lion's trickery. Every animal who came to Lion’s cave heard songs of Lions deceit, and lion did not get to eat any more innocent trusting animals.


Author's Note
The following story is based on a fable about a lion and the fox.  A lion is too old to hunt anymore, so he tells all of the other animals he is sick.  As the animals came to sympathize with the lion, he eats them.  The fox decided to stay a safe distance away from the lion, refusing the lion's requests to come closer.  The fox outsmarts the lion at the end of the tale by noticing that footsteps only lead into the cave, but not out.  The fox then leaves the cave, managing to avoid being the lion's meal.  This is where the original fable ends. 

I decided to stick to the original plot, with a few additions. I gave it some backstory and added details about the charters.  The original story did not give any details about the animals who visited the lion, and I decided it would be slightly sadder if the reader knew a little bit about the characters.  Since a fable is a kids story, I decided to write my story in a similar style.

The image itself was selected directly from the original story.  I could not find another image which I liked more, so I just decided to reuse this image. 

Bibliography
This story is based off of a Fable in Aesop for Children, by anonymous, illustrated by Milo Winter.