The Mouse Looking for a Wife
Once upon a time, at the edge of an old forest where cool waters flowed, there lived a small but proud field mouse. This mouse had set his mind on marrying the strongest being in the world and building a magnificent home. His golden fur gleamed in the sun, and his pointed nose always sought the splendor of the heights. Finally, early one morning, he set out and began a long journey to find the strongest one in the sky. He raised his head and called out to the brightly shining sun: "O great sun, you are the strongest being in the world, will you marry me?" The sun smiled and said, "There is one stronger than me; look, that pitch-black cloud can pass before me and cover my light."
The little mouse at once ran swiftly to the majestic cloud and made the same proposal to it. The cloud answered with its thundering voice, "Stronger than me is the harshly blowing wind; it hurls me wherever it wishes." Thereupon the mouse chased after the blowing and roaring wind and offered it his love. But the wind said with a howl, "My strength does not reach that lofty mountain; it stands before me like an unshakable wall." The mouse, reaching the peak of the majestic mountain he had climbed, proudly asked the mountain to marry him. The lofty mountain sighed deeply and said, "I resist the wind, but I cannot stop a little mouse that hollows out my breast."
Hearing these words, the little mouse froze in astonishment when he understood that the superior power he sought was in his own kind. Understanding that his own tiny body could bring a huge mountain to its knees destroyed his arrogance completely. Running joyfully down from the peak, he returned to his own valley and there he met a humble field mouse. The two little mice began to live a happy life in a warm home full of loyalty and love. The one who seeks his own worth far away finally grasps that true strength and peace are hidden in his own essence. There is no wisdom like knowing one's own shortcoming.