The Monkey and the Crocodile

It was a beautiful lake surrounded by lush green grasses, beautiful trees,

mountains and sweetest, tastiest jamun trees. There lived a monkey on
one of the jamun trees located near the lake.

The lake also had a few crocodiles. There was one crocodile that used to
collect the jamun fruits from the lake that fall from the tree.

As the crocodile visits the jamun trees every day, it became friends with
Monkey. Crocodile and monkey met every day. The monkey helped
crocodile by providing more and fresh jamun fruits from the tree. Their
relationship continued and they became close pals.

One day, the monkey asked the crocodile to give some jamun fruits to his
wife and family as the fruits were more delicious. The crocodile agreed
and took a lot of jamun fruits to his wife.

His wife was so happy and surprised that she never ate so delicious fruits,
so far. She inquired her husband, where he got those fruits. The crocodile
told her, his friend, monkey who lives in a Jamun tree gave these for him.

The wife crocodile made a plan in her mind. She asked her husband,
‘Does your friend eat these fruits every day?’ The crocodile replied yes.
She added, ‘Oh my goodness.

These are the sweetest fruits we ever ate. Imagine how delicious the
monkey’s heart would be if he eat these fruits daily! I need the heart of
your friend. Can you please bring it for me?’

The crocodile was shocked to hear it from his wife. He replied, ‘But he is
my close friend. I can’t do this to him.’

The wife crocodile told him, ‘don’t worry. You bring him here. I will then
take care! Or else, you may try to push him down into the water if he
doesn’t know swimming!’
After a long time, the crocodile agreed to bring monkey to his wife.

The very next day, crocodile invited monkey to join them for lunch and
asked for his favorite foods. Monkey happily agreed to be the guest and
but worried that the monkey did not know how to swim in the lake.
Crocodile on thinking about monkey’s sorrow, pleased monkey and told
him, ‘Don’t worry. I will carry you on my back and will take you back safely
too!’

The monkey accepted and crocodile rode him to his home on his back
on the water. As they reached half way, the crocodile tried to push
monkey down into the water. However, monkey held the crocodile tightly
and did not fall. Monkey got suspicious about crocodile’s act and asked
him to tell the truth.

Since crocodile believed him as his good friend, he told about the
conversation and the fight his wife had with him and he was taking
monkey to eat his heart!

The intelligent monkey said, ‘Oh my dear friend, you should have told me
this earlier. I left my heart on one of the branches of the tree as I won’t
carry it if I travel long. If you take me back, I can give you my heart.’

Crocodile accepted and rode the monkey back to the lake. As they
reached the tree where the monkey lived, the monkey climbed quickly
and escaped from the crocodile.
He shouted at crocodile, ‘I thought you as a good friend, but you
cheated me. I will never come back and never be your friend.’

The crocodile understood his mistake and returned back home empty
handed, losing a good friend indeed.