The Elephant and His Friends

In the heart of a green jungle lived a young elephant named Ellie. Ellie was gentle and kind, but he was very lonely, for he had no friends to play with. One sunny morning, he decided to find some.

First, he met a monkey swinging through the trees. "Will you be my friend?" asked Ellie hopefully. The monkey looked down at him. "You are too big!" he laughed. "You cannot swing from branch to branch like I can." And off he swung.

Turned Away

Next, Ellie asked a rabbit. "You are too big to fit in my burrow," said the rabbit, and hopped away. He asked a frog by the pond. "You are too big and heavy," croaked the frog. "You would squash me flat!" He asked a fox. "You are too big," said the fox, "and besides, you cannot run as fast as I can."

Poor Ellie walked home with his trunk hanging low. "Nobody wants a friend as big as me," he sighed.

The Tiger's Roar

Small Acts of Kindness

On his way home that day, Ellie passed the rabbit struggling to reach some tender leaves on a high branch. Without a word, Ellie stretched out his long trunk and pulled the branch down for him. "Thank you!" gasped the rabbit in surprise.

A little further on, he found the frog's pond almost dried up in the heat. Ellie sucked up water from the river in his trunk and sprayed it into the pond until it was full again. The frog croaked with delight.

He even gave the tired fox a ride across the wide stream on his broad back. "You are not so bad for a big fellow," admitted the fox grudgingly. But still, none of them offered to be his friend — until the tiger came.

The next day, a fierce tiger prowled into the jungle, roaring hungrily. The monkey, the rabbit, the frog, and the fox all ran for their lives. "Help! Help!" they cried. Ellie heard their cries and came rushing through the trees, trumpeting loudly.

When the tiger saw the mighty elephant charging toward him, he turned tail and fled into the hills, never to return. The little animals peeked out from their hiding places, trembling.

True Friends at Last

"Ellie, you saved us!" cried the monkey, climbing down. "We were wrong to turn you away," said the rabbit shyly. "Will you forgive us and be our friend?" The frog and the fox nodded eagerly.

Ellie's eyes shone with happiness. "Of course!" he trumpeted. And from that day on, the five friends played together every single day, the monkey riding proudly on Ellie's back.

Moral of the Story

True friends accept you just as you are. Size, shape, and looks do not matter — a kind heart does.