Reading Notes: The Turtle and the Geese

The turtle after falling from the sky.

Source: Grandville.

The story of the Turtle and the Geese is one in which a turtle lived in a pond where he met two geese. He ended up becoming friends with these Geese who bragged about how they were only visiting the pond for the weekend, but they were traveling from a place that was so much more luxurious than the pong and the Turtle was immediately intrigued. The Geese said "you can come back with us if you want!" and as much as the Turtle wanted to, he didn't know how he would be able to travel back with them, as he could not fly and at the pace that he walked, it would take years for him to get there. The Geese said "well we can take you if you want but you have to agree to keep your mouth shut for the whole journey and the Turtle agreed with no hesitation, as not speaking was an easy task. The Geese brought the Turtle a stick to which the Turtle would bite down on and not let go until they reached their destination. As they took off for their flight, the Turtle could hear kids near the pond laughing at how ridiculous he looked hanging off a stick that the Geese were holding. The Turtle wasn't going to just sit there and listen to the taunting of the kids so he thought he would give them a piece of his mind by yelling out "Mind your own business, you little nuisances!" and because the Turtle could not mind his own business, he realized mid-sentence that the second he opened up his mouth to yell at the kids, he fell from the sky, dying at the feet of the children.

I am going to rewrite this story, but instead of the main character trying to escape where they live to go somewhere else more beautiful, I am going to put a twist on the story where he or she is the bad guy and they are trying to escape the scene after committing a crime and they get caught because of a foolish decision. I haven't conjured up the exact plot yet, but it will be a fun one to write!

Bibliography:
The Turtle and the Geese. Source: Jataka Tales by Ellen C. Babbitt.