This story entitled “Two Cats And A Monkey” may very well be evergreens and nuggets of wisdom for the little ones whose eyes ply the pages of this story and follow the story of two cats and a monkey. And this is how this rather cheerful and bright story raises such questions as friendship, cooperation, and the sinister path of greed. While reading amusing stories of the cats and entertaining practical jokes by the monkey, especially when the cats devised how to capture their prey, children and young readers will learn about the principles of negotiating, trust and fair play. Both entertaining and informative, this story is a perfect good night story or a story that can be used to teach children in class since it touches the hearts and minds of children.
Table of Content:
- Two Cats and a Monkey Story
- Two Cats and a Monkey
- Two Foolish Cats and a Cunning Monkey
- Moral of the Story
- References
Two Cats and a Monkey Story
I came across a story of two cats namely, Whiskers and Mittens in a beautiful green forest one day. They were inseparable and would go for hours and wander through the forest and play hide and seek and catch butterflies, and have little naps on warm sunny days. They were good friends; nonetheless, they quarreled over petty issues, particularly when it concerns mealtime.
One day, Whiskers and Mittens were walking in the forest when they met a big tasty piece of cheese in the middle of the forest on the grass. They giggled and bloated their eyes and mouth as they looked and mouth-watered at such a delicious meal.
“Oh, look at that cheese!” exclaimed Whiskers. “I saw it first, so it’s mine!”
Mittens frowned and replied, “No way! We found it together, so we should share it equally.”
While the cats tried to share the divided portion of the cheese with each other this is when the comic aspect of the episode could be seen as Mischief the Monkey that was in the tree watching the cats’ mischievous fight. Mischief was a trickster; the fox most especially was known to be tricky and would always try to find a way to beat other animals in the forest.
Two Cats and a Monkey
Seeing the cats quarrel, Mischief decided to intervene. He swung down from his tree and approached the feuding felines with a friendly smile.
“Hello, my dear friends!” Mischief greeted them. “I couldn’t help but overhear your disagreement. Perhaps I can be of assistance?”
Whiskers and Mittens looked at each other, then at Mischief. They were hesitant at first, but the monkey seemed genuine in his offer to help.
“Well,” Mittens began, “we found this delicious cheese, but we can’t agree on how to divide it fairly.”
Mischief nodded thoughtfully. “I see. As it happens, I’m an expert at solving such problems. Why don’t you let me divide the cheese for you? I promise to be completely fair and impartial.”
The cats, still not entirely trusting each other, agreed that having a third party divide the cheese might be the best solution.
“Alright,” said Whiskers. “But make sure it’s exactly equal!”
Mischief grinned and pulled out a small scale from behind his back. “Of course! I’ll use this scale to ensure perfect equality.”
Two Foolish Cats and a Cunning Monkey
Mischief placed the cheese on his scale and pretended to examine it carefully. Then, with a swift motion, he broke the cheese into two pieces and placed them on either side of the scale.
“Oh my,” Mischief exclaimed with exaggerated concern. “It seems one piece is slightly heavier than the other. Let me fix that for you.”
The monkey cut a small portion from the large piece, and then arranged the piece back on the scale to have a smaller weight than the other piece.
“Oops!” Mischief said, feigning surprise. “Now this piece is too light. I’ll have to take a bit from the other side to balance it out.”
Whiskers and Mittens watched anxiously as Mischief continued to “adjust” the portions, taking small bites from each piece to supposedly even them out. However, with each bite, the cheese grew smaller and smaller.
He said that the cats were too engrossed in this game of ensuring the other one did not eat more of the cheese than him that they did not realize Mischief was slowly feeding himself most of the cheese. It conned them both into such an obsession with equity that they did not even realize how ridiculous they were behaving.
Lastly, Mischief took an entire handful of cheese and said, “Friends, I have tried my best to fairly partition the cheese among you. Naturally, as you all can see there is only one sliver remaining. For all the troubles you have given to me in getting the cheese divided I deserve this little piece.”
Before the cats could say a word to stop him Mischief took the rest of the cheese and placing it in his mouth he ran up a tree leaving behind the astonished Whiskers and Mittens.
As reality sank in, the cats realized how their stubbornness and lack of cooperation had cost them both. They had let their petty argument blind them to the bigger picture, allowing a cunning trickster to take advantage of their foolishness.
Whiskers sighed and said, “Oh, Mittens, what have we done? If only we had agreed to share the cheese from the beginning, we both could have enjoyed it.”
Mittens nodded sadly. “You’re right, Whiskers. Our inability to compromise and trust each other led us to this situation. We let our greed get the best of us.”
The cats learned a valuable lesson that day. They understood that by working together and being willing to compromise, they could have both benefited. Instead, their stubbornness and distrust had left them with nothing.
From that day forward, Whiskers and Mittens made a pact to always communicate openly and fairly with each other. They promised to share their findings equally and to never let small disagreements come between their friendship again.
Mischief, the monkey being wicked as always, went on to play mischief in the forest however Whiskers and Mittens were alert. He informed the other animals on the work done and told them that working together is far better than allowing the disease of greed to inhibit one’s vision.
Such is the story of the two cats and the monkey, proving my point that it is more beneficial to be friends with others than to deceive them as the monkey tried to do with the two cats, and of course everyone learnt the lesson that being wise with one’s actions can be a great way of coming out on top as well as the moral of the tale. From it they learned that in any event it is more appropriate whether faced with a problem to look for a solution they can all take as opposed to competing on who deserves the biggest chunk.
Moral of the Story
This tale teaches children several important lessons:
- Cooperation is Key
- Greed can be Blinding
- Trust and Communication are Essential in Friendships
- Be Wary of Those who Offer Easy Solutions
- Think Before You Act
- Fairness Doesn’t Always Mean Exact Equality
Symbiosis and the willingness to make concessions are beneficial for most of the parties in a given situation.
If we dwell so much on selfishness, then it will just end up earning us nothing in life.
For this reason, people can avoid misunderstandings and foster more warm relations with other people if they are open and communicate truthfully.
You cannot trust anyone who volunteers to help you because not all of them will be out to assist you.
Erasing the foolish mistakes is made easy as all one has to do is to think twice before making the action.
Once in a while, it is wise to listen and be satisfied rather than arguing over petty issues.
All these lessons should be learnt at the childhood stage, this way children will have proper conduct instilled in them as they mature. The story of the two cats and the monkey shows everyone that it is wiser, kinder, and better to work together rather than to focus on a cheese even if it’s tasty, big and glossy.
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