The Scary Swamp Fable
The Scary Swamp Fable
Armando Alligator swam happily in the swamp. He giggled to himself as people and birds got so flustered when they saw him. “Gosh, all those creatures are pretty weird. Why do they get so scared when they see me? I’m the friendliest guy ever,” Armando thought.
Armando looked up just in time to see Eegore Eel slithering on the water’s smooth surface. Armando winked his left eye at Eegore. Eegore looked suspiciously at Armando and moved on his way along the water’s edge.
Just ahead, Donna Duck floated on the water, unaware of Armando or Eegore. Donna dipped, dove and splashed about, enjoying herself.
Suddenly, she caught sight of Armando’s snout and 2 beady eyes protruding above the water’s surface. Donna squawked and quickly paddled in the other direction in a panicked flourish of activity.
“Oh my gosh,” gasped Donna. “I got so close to that scary alligator!”
About 30 feet in the direction Donna was swimming, Eegore Eel rolled and moved stealthily through the swamp.
Donna spied the eel and thought, “Look at that little thing. It won’t do anything to hurt me. And compared to that alligator’s sharp teeth and big mouth, why, that eel is harmless!”
Donna Duck pumped her flat-webbed feet to paddle further away from Armando Alligator, all the while moving closer and closer to Eegore Eel.
Before Donna Duck realised what was happening, she found herself staring into the gaping jaws of the eel as Eegore lunged for her!
Fortunately, Armando showed up just in the nick of time to save her from being eaten by the eel and tossed her into the air so she could fly away.
Moral: Assumptions can lead you astray. Don’t rush to judgement based on appearances alone.
Personal Reflection
Donna Duck saw Armando Alligator first and was scared away by his appearance. She had no idea what a friendly, fun alligator he was. As she worked to escape from Armando Alligator, Donna barely took notice of Eegore Eel.
Have there been times in your life when you judged someone by how they looked? Have you ever been proven wrong?
When you give yourself time to get to know new people, you’ll be better equipped to make decisions of character.
Looking deeper than appearances helps you avoid the trap of false assumptions about others solely based on how they look.
Allow yourself time to get to know people before you assume anything about them based on their appearance.
Self-Reflection Questions:
- When was the last time you made assumptions based on how someone looked?
- How did that relationship turn out for you?
- In the future, what will you do differently when you approach new people?
