WHY MONKEYS MOVE ON TREES

WHY MONKEYS MOVE ON TREESIn the animal kingdom the lion was the most dreaded of all animals. His ability to attack, kill and eat any animal made most other animals to avoid any encounter with him. One day the lion met the sheep grazing in the field. “I am hungry and I want you for my super” said the lion. Fine I am all yours” replied the sheep who was watching him from the corner of his eyes” But only after a contest, he added. What contest? Can I not beat you in anything there is to do?” The lion boasted. The sheep pointed to a pit at the end of the field.” I jump that everyday to get into this field to find .my food. Can you jump it as I am going to jump now? Asked the sheep, he moved back a few steps and run down to jump the pit. He called to the lion to do the same. The Lion laughed. “You moved backward, and then run forward to jump just like all cowards do”. He targeted sheep from the other end as he moved to the mouth of the pit.” I can jump right here to get you there” he said. The Sheep retorted, “You can’t do it”. The lion jumped in anger and fell right into the pit. He struggled to get out but could not and to his amazement, he saw how deep the pit was. It was then that he realized that he was tricked by the sheep. The pains he sustained from the fall and the mockery by the sheep made him so angry that he imagined swallowing the sheep alive. The Sheep simply strolled away. The lion remained in the pit till the following morning. He was so exhausted. Meanwhile other animals were going about their business of the day. Some were going to the market and others to the stream. As they passed near the pit, the lion would call out for help. First it was the antelope who was passing, “help, help” cried out the lion. “Who is calling for help” called the antelope as he moved closer to the pit. When he saw the lion, he ran away without looking back. Then the cow came along, the lion called out again, the cow walked to the pit and said to the lion” Mr. Lion, how sad it is to be in such a state and nobody to help you”. The lion pleaded. “Please help me Mr. Cow” The cow retorted, “for you to come out eat my children and then me” She mooed at the lion and walked away. The answers from other animals were equally negative all day. No one attempted to help him. Towards the evening of the third day, Mr. Monkey was passing when he heard the groaning of the lion. “Please help me “called a weak voice “Who is there” the monkey asked. “Please help a friend,” the lion raised his voice with hope. The monkey looked into the pit and said “When has Mr. lion become a friend” The lion pleaded, “I have realized my sins, I have repented, please help a friend, “Trust me”.“Trust you” the monkey called back “no one should ever trust you Mr. Lion” The lion pleaded and wept until the monkey became very sorry for him. “Promise me, you won’t hurt me,” He said to the lion. “I promise with my life” the lion, scratching the walls of the pit with his claws. The monkey lowered his long tail into the pit holding unto some scrubs to support the weight of the lion. The lion climbed out of the pit to the surface with the monkey’s tail but would not let the monkey go.“But you promised not to hurt me,” said the monkey. “I just want to rest,” replied the lion, holding firmly unto the monkey’s waist. “Go ahead and rest but let me go” the monkey cried out in disbelief. Suddenly Madam Tortoise appeared as they were arguing.” Aha, when two people are fighting, the third person must separate them,” said the tortoise “What happened?” she enquired. The monkey told his side of the story and the lion reluctantly told what he wanted to suit him to the tortoise. The tortoise, thinking of what to do to save the monkey, said, “with your two hands up in the air say, God I have done noting wrong” The monkey did as directed. The tortoise asked the lion to do the same but he held the monkey with one hand and raised the other hand up to say “God I have done nothing wrong”. The tortoise rejected the lion’s plea on the grounds that he used only one hand. This time she asked the lion to use his two hands. As the lion lifted his two hands to say “God I have done nothing wrong”, the monkey jumped up to the tree while the tortoise ran to the scrubs and hid behind the roof of a tree covered with leaves. To this day monkeys move on from tree to tree to avoid the lion. The lion having realized that he had lost the monkey ran to the scrubs looking for the tortoise. He searched everywhere using a hoe to up root the scrubs. When he hooked the tortoise’s leg the tortoise would sing ‘He hooked the root of a tree thinking he has got the tortoise”. The lion would leave her leg and hooked on the root of the tree instead of the tortoise. Then the tortoise would say ‘my leg, my leg, you will break my leg”. The lion added more strength and dragged until the root broke. The game continued in this manner until the hoe broke. The lion became very angry. He began to uproot every scrub with his paws. He threw away everything he touched until he uprooted a lager scrub and the tortoise along. He threw her far away to the other side of the pit. As madam tortoise landed, she ran away with her strength into the bush. Meanwhile the lion overworked himself in his search for Madam. Tortoise until he fainted from exhaustion and hunger. Why Monkeys move on trees is an adaptation of “Abasi, Abasi Ndueghe’ in Ibibio Folklore. Abasi Means God and Ndueghe, means I have done nothing wrong.