The Fox and the Grapes - Sequel: The Fox that knew the Grapes!

.......”These grapes are sour”, said the fox and it left the vineyard silently.

A sense of anger filled its heart. As it walked back home, several questions flashed its mind. What went wrong? Were the grapes too high? Was it too sunny? Maybe it was because of the wind? Or maybe the Gods didn't like it? By the time it went to its bed there was no more anger, but what remained was disappointment. The fox realized that it failed only because it didn't perform well that it made a poor jump. It said, “I’m the reason for my own failure. Poor performance, poor result”. When there is a success no one cares to list out the reasons that made their way to victory. Moreover it’s 'the time' to celebrate. Who would want to waste their time contemplating when there is a big party around the corner? ‘I have won’ is the only thought that lingers in our mind. But when there is a failure, it is totally the other way around. We tend ask so many questions and try to find out the ‘real’ reason only to end up in a headache. Finally even when there could be so many external factors influencing the failure we end up only in blaming ourselves. This is what had happened to the fox. It did not sleep the entire night.

The next day morning the sun rose and so did the fox’s hope. Being rational, the fox felt it was of no use to be gloomed in disappointment. It decided to end all its sorrows and wanted to try one more time. The fox actually couldn't give up. Strange isn't? First, it labeled the grapes as sour so that it would never go behind it. Then it accepted that it was the reason for its own failure. But now it changed all its views and wanted to taste the grapes at-least once. All of us fall at a certain point of time. Victory can never be final result always. We fall only to get up. Every failure is only a test of resiliency. How quick one comes out of the failure is a greater virtue than success itself. Unfortunately many don’t understand this rule of the game of life. Fortunately the cunning fox knew this. Taking a long breath of the fresh morning air it said, “And when I fall down I have to pick myself back up”. The fox stood up. This time it wanted to taste success more than the grapes per se. It went to gymnasium, did all sorts of exercises and practiced jump to high. It practiced in the mornings, in the evenings and in the nights. It squeezed itself with pain. It worked out its plans vigorously as it wanted only one result – success. The fox practiced so much that it unknowing began to enjoy the sport of jumping.

On the ‘D’ day the fox reached the vineyard and it smiled a ‘here I come’ smile on seeing the grapes. This time with so much confidence in its heart it was very sure it could taste a ‘double victory’ - Success and the grapes. The enthusiastic fox jumped.

One.

Two.

And there you go.

Filled with greed to taste grapes, it gulped the entire bunch of grapes at one go. And it said, “Yuck!!” and spat everything out. The grapes were SOUR! All the glorious treasures of the world, all great achievements and victories, moneys and materials, ‘that which should be tasted once at the least’ remains sweet only until it is tasted. Once tasted, everything becomes sour and something else becomes sweet. Everything is because of the mind. It is the mind that plays the trick. Something becomes precious only if the mind values it and the same thing becomes redundant only because of the same mind. There is always something sweeter only because what was sweet has become sour.

Disappointment. But it is not the same degree of disappointment that the fox experienced earlier. This was worse. When disappointment comes in for the second time it is more severe and more painful. Just like the second heart attack it could take one’s life. So much was the fox affected in anguish and pain. Lost its own ‘self’, the fox didn't know what to do. It began to walk. It walked and walked and walked. The fox didn't know where its legs were leading it. But it kept walking. Everyday the sun rose, but now it didn't make any difference. Without any food and sleep it walked. Without any hope, without any feeling, pale and empty the fox walked.

One afternoon the fox stopped abruptly. It felt that it had walked really too much. From the vineyards of Spain, it finally reached the country Greece. The fox realized it made no sense to walk aimlessly and that would lead only to its death. It decided to lead a ‘what it can do its best’ life.

Days passed. Every day the sun came up bright and then the moon came up glittering. It did not make any difference for it. Life went normal for the fox. When you accept things as they are then ‘all is well’. The fox was at peace! But still as days progressed somewhere deep inside its heart, it knew that its story was not over yet. Slowly the thought of ‘my day is near’ began to grow. The fox matured enough by then, never anticipated anything ‘big’.

After several months on one fine day, there was a big announcement. What else can one expect in the land of Greece? Yes it was the Olympics! The country started its preparation for the games and everybody was counting to watch the new events introduced that year. One such new event called ‘high jump’ was also introduced. The fox came to know that it was an event where one has to jump to win. It thought to itself that by participating in the event it may not win the game but it is not going to lose anything. After all the fox has to do one thing that it enjoyed – jumping. The fox decided to participate without bothering about the result.

On the day of event, the stadium was overflowing with enthusiastic and noisy audience. So many were watching the event with a lot of expectation, but the fox was not nervous and was relaxed. It was not bothered who was watching it. It clearly knew that whatever happens in the event, the sun is going to set in the evening and rise tomorrow morning just like any other day. Moreover it knew that it was good at jumping and the problem was only the grapes which were not here. On its turn, with the sound of the whistle it started with a hop towards the rod. The crowd went silent.

One..

Two..

And there you go.

Like a feather in the air, it passed the rod and fell on the bed. Cheers! The crowd applauded in such a way that the skies could come down. The fox performed well in the other categories as well. To its own surprise the fox won gold medals in all the categories that it participated. News flashed - reporters, interviews, photographs and what not. The fox became a hero in a promiscuous jump. Had the fox tasted the grapes in the very first go; it wouldn’t have practiced the high jumps so diligently and wouldn’t have become the center of all the attraction now. Haven’t this happened to each one of us? Hardwork at times won’t give its fruits immediately but one will surely reap the benefits in the long run. Also failures are actually not bad compared to the way they are portrayed. After all, every failure only leads one to a better place in life. The fox got all that it never anticipated. After many many days the fox felt happy.

In the following years the fox continued the sport of high jump. Every year the games came only for the fox to win the gold medals. It went on and banged 17 gold medals setting a world record. The fox was praised as the best athlete that the world has ever seen. The fox became the epitome of success. Fox traveler, Fox crime, Fox action movies, Fox news, 7th century Fox were all started after it. But the fox didn’t celebrate the success like the way it wanted to celebrate after having the grapes. The fox could feel that it is climbing to its zenith. But the humble fox knew the ‘real taste’ of success and it came out of all the accolades in a matter of time. It went ahead to the next step and kept doing what it could do the best. The wreaths of victories came to its paws even if it did not want it.

Later the fox married a beautiful girl fox and they made love. It lived in peace and happiness.

After 7 years....

 

The fox and the girl fox they raised 4 fox babies. The fox started a high jump school and trained everyone on high jump and other sports. The entire generations of the fox family participated in the Olympics and made sure they won the high jump event. The fox bought all the vineyards of the Mediterranean region. From Spain to Greece, the fox bought them all. It tasted them all along with its victories. 

But the fox always knew that ’These grapes are sour’.



- Antony Dilip A

 

(That the grapes are always sour was told by one of my teacher and that the fox winning to set a world record on the medals tally was inspired from the life of Michael Phelps )