Monkey-ing around with the Ancestors

Artist: Thomas Bewick

The Fox and The Monkey - Aesop's Fables

A fox and a monkey were arguing about which of the two were "better born" and comparing their family trees.  When they passed a cemetery, the monkey stopped and gave a great sigh.  The fox was perplexed and asked the monkey to explain his sorrow.  The monkey pointed to the tombstones and told the fox that all those monuments were placed in honour of his forefathers; who in their day were very eminent men indeed.  At first the fox was speechless at this revelation about his companion.  However, he quickly recovered when he realized, and reminded the monkey, that it was very unlikely any of his illustrious ancestors would rise up out of their graves and dispute the matter.

Moral: Boasters brag most when no one is around to expose them

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There is so much to be learned from our ancestors.
The monkey was devious and bragged when no one was around to expose his lies.  The fox was clever because he saw through it.  It still holds true today, although with the propensity for past posts on today's social media to rise up in the future and "dispute the matter" .... we'd all better be careful!

Meadow Sweet Grove © V. Buchanan 2019