The Eagle and the Kite
Long ago, on a mountain peak where cool waters ran and lofty cliffs rose towards the sky, there lived a magnificent eagle. With his piercing gaze and his powerful wings, this eagle was regarded as the unshakable ruler of the skies. One day a cunning kite, gliding the length of the valley, came up to this majestic bird and approached him with admiration. Seeing the eagle's solitude as an opportunity, the kite wanted to win his trust and profit from his strength. So he began to speak with honeyed words to the eagle, who was perched upon a high cliff. "O exalted lord of the skies, to be your friend would be the greatest honour of my life," said the kite. Astonished at the boldness of this small and feeble bird, the eagle asked what he could possibly offer.
With an air of complete self-assurance, the kite puffed out his chest and launched into grand promises. "If you become my friend, I shall hunt you enormous rabbits every day, and even ostriches," he said. The eagle believed the kite's beguiling words, accepted his offer and made a pact with him. When a few days had passed and hunger came upon him, the eagle reminded his friend of the promise he had given. "Where are those colossal prey you were going to bring me?" he called out to the kite. The kite took to the air at once and after a while came back with a tiny mouse clamped in his beak. The eagle looked at the scrawny mouse laid before him and thundered with rage and disappointment.
"Were those magnificent prey you promised me nothing but this worthless mouse?" he asked. Wholly unruffled and with an entirely composed manner, the kite looked the eagle in the face. "To win the friendship of a ruler as mighty as you, I would have promised anything at all," he said. The eagle felt a deep shame for having been taken in by fine words and for having believed empty promises. Understanding that friendships built upon lies are worth nothing, the eagle drove the kite from his presence for ever. From that day on, the eagle never again paid heed to feigned promises. Those who make great promises they cannot keep are doomed to lose, when the time comes, the trust placed in them. As the saying goes, a liar's candle burns only until nightfall.