The Mamba and The Man

On a cold day a man passes a Black Mamba snake on the road who is too cold to move. The mamba asks the man to warm him inside his coat, next to his heart, with a promise not to bite the man. The man tells the frozen snake "No!  If I did you would bite me".  The mamba in this helpless state looked up at the man a promised he would never bite him.  "How could I harm the man that saved my life" replied the snake.  Moved with compassion the man agrees to help.  He picked up the snake and placed him inside his coat and shirt against his warm skin.  The mamba now warm, bites the man. Quickly he throws the snake to the ground.  Feelings the snake's venom about to take his life, he asks the snake "Why did you bite me, you promised not to."  The snake responded "Because that is what snakes do. You knew I was a snake when you helped me". . Moral: do not let a snake take advantage of the warmth if your heart.

Sammie The Shoeshine Man

Sammie the shoeshine man lived life day by day. He lived in a abandoned home, and made just enough money shining shoes to buy food for the day. He never had alot, but always had enough for today. He said God would take care of tomorrow. The police chief tested this belief by stopping him from shining shoes. So Sammie began picking up cans on the side of the highway. He made just enough for the day.  The police chief stopped him from picking up cans, and made him work for free as a guard.  He took the gun he was given and sold it at a pawn shop and bought food and a pocket knife and black paint. The next day the police chief made him guard a prisoner and told him to shout the prisoner if he tried to escape.  Soon the prisoner started to move.  Sammie took out his gun and said "If this man is guilty let this gun fire fast and true, but if he is innocent let this gun turn to wood."  Sammie looked at the gun with shock, and dropped it to the ground.  The wooden sound of the gun shocked the crowd. Amazed his resourcefulness, the Chief wanted to hire Sammie as an advisor. Sammie refused and went back to shining shoes. Moral: Quit worrying, trust God

Beautiful Brown Eyes

In a time when time was still young, there lived a girl with beautiful brown eyes.  She was admired by all who ever gazed into those eyes.  A drought came to her region the year she reached marrying age.  Each day she would go to the river and slowly let the water fill her jar from the mud holes left in the river.  But soon even that water had dried up.  As she cried in the riverbed because she could not provide water for her family, a fish came out of the pool of tears at her feet.  The fish also had beautiful brown eyes.  His gentle voice offered to help the girl.  He opened his mouth and cool fresh water poured into the jar.  Each day the girl returned to the mud hole and the fish gave her more water.  Soon they fell in love and had a secret wedding.  Her father discovered his daughter had married a fish .  Embarrassed to have a fish for a son-in-law, he had the fish killed and brought his daughter.  In tears the girl carried her husband back in the riverbed.  Her tears soon caused the river to flow again drowning her. In death she and her fish husband had beautiful children. They are called Water Lillies. They are a symbol of true love.  Moral: Children are meant to be a testimony of true love.

The Sweetest Love

A beautiful young woman came of marrying age. She had many suitors who came to win her heart, none of the men were successful.  Not far from the village lived a handsome red antelope, he had heard of the woman's beauty and decided he could use a wife.  As he was visiting the beautiful woman she asked him to get her some honey.  Quickly he found a beehive high in a tree.  He tried and tried but he could not jump high enough to reach it.  When he returned the woman was dissappointed and sent him away.  At the camp he told his friend a strong ape about the beautiful one.  The ape decided he could use a wife and and visited the beautiful woman.  During the visit she also asked him for some honey.  He quickly left and found the tree with the beehive and climbed up the tree.  But the honey was just beyond his reach.   He tried and tried but he could not climb high enough to reach it.  That night he returnd to the camp and also talked about the beautiful one. The tiny gentle mouse decided that he could use a wife.  Even though he was small, he visited the beautiful woman.  Before she even asked he offer to get her some honey.  Quickly he found the tree and climbed up bringing her honey.  All the villagers cheered when he returned with the jar of honey. She was so pleased, he won her heart.  Although the first two were handsome and strong, they did not do what was needed to win her heart. The tiny mouse met her needs and won her heart. Moral: true love is not measured beauty or strength but s desire to meet each others needs

Fling-A-Mile

A hungry Anansi sticks his hand in a hole hoping to find something to eat.  While he was searching something grabs his hand.  Afraid Anansi asks who has his hand.  A deep voice from within the hole replies "It's me Fling-aMile" and then flings him a mile to prove it. After landing in the exact same spot twice, Anansi marks the spot with a stake gets his BBQ grill and goes out looking for dinner. After tricking goat, hen, antelope. etc, to reach into the hole, he tries to trick monkey. But from his vantage point up in the tree monkey had seen Anansi tricks and reverses the game. Monkey eats Anansi. Moral: Whenever you trick someone, Someone is waiting to trick you.

The Amazing Dream

Many years ago when street peddlers were common, one street peddler had an amazing dream. In the dream he was told to go to the town square, there something amazing will happen. The peddler pondered over the dream, but continued his daily routine.  He picked an apple from the tree in his yard, loaded his wagon with produce sold his goods.  But that night he had the same dream again. The next night he dreamed the same dream again. Finally the peddler decided to leave the ol' mule and wagon behind and go to the town square.  The peddler sat there all day, but nothing amazing happened.  The next day after dreaming the dream again, he returned to the town square.  After waiting there the whole day he returned home.  The next morning he returned to the town square.  A policeman watched the peddler just sit on that bench for the third day and decided to shoo him away.  "What are you doing sitting here three days in a row?" asked the officer?  The peddler tells him about his dreams, the cop laughs. The policeman says if he followed his dream he would have searched for a peddler's house in the country with an apple tree in the yard and dug up treasure that was buried underneath it. The Peddler smiled and left.  He went home and the first thing the next morning he dug up the treasure under his tree.  He is now a rich man. Moral: Follow your Dreams

The Water Woman

A man down on his luck finds love with a Water Woman. The water woman is afraid to let herself fall in love with the earth man, because she had heard many stories of man's cruelty. The man promised her that he would love and treat her with respect.  So despite their differences they marry and his life improves quickly.  Soon he became wealthy, and the couple had many children, it seemed tha what ever he touched prospered.  Now arrogant with success, the man mistreats his wife. Not realizing she was the key to his prosperity. Broken hearted she leaves him and return to the river... his children and wealth follow her. Now that his wife left him, once again he was broke and alone. Moral: Love costs little, but it's rewards are priceless!

The One You Don't See Coming

Deep in the forest of Ashanti people the elders often told the story of the mystical creature called " The One You Don't See Coming".  This animal waits until night to hunt. Silent as a leopard he creeps in and steals the brains and thoughts of everyone until morning comes.  The elders say no hunter has ever caught him.  If one caught him he would be the greatest hunter of all time.  Three young hunters decided to track and capture "The One You Don't See Coming".  They searched the edge of the forest for tracks, but found none.  They traveled deep into the bush hoping to hear or smell it, but they could not.  At a watering hole they decided to wait for it to come, for all animals must come to drink.  One climbed out on a branch of a tree next to the watering hole.  The others waited in the bush to attack it when he spotted it.  Twice, the creature climbed up the tree and tried to attack the young hunter. His eyes began close, and his head began to fall to his chest, But he recovered and yelled for help.  But before his friend arrived the animal was gone.  A third time the creature climbed up the tree and grabbed the young hunter and flung him down into the water below.  He screamed "I got him I got him", but when his friends arrived he was again alone.  "How can we hunt animal that can not be seen or heard or smelled? You almost see him but you never do." "The young hunters discovered the elders were correct. And they gave up the hunt for "The One You Don't See Coming".  Riddle: What steals your brains and thoughts just for a few hours and when morning comes you are whole again?

Dazi's Necklace

Five girls were bathing in the river. When Dazi arrived, the girls invited her into river to bathe with them.  Usually these girls shunned her, jealous of her beautiful handmade necklace.  The girls told her they offered their necklaces to the water spirit as a gift, and she should do the same.  Seeing the other girls necklaces were gone she also took of her necklace and threw it into the river as a sacrifice.  "You silly girl" they laughed "did you really think we would throw away our necklaces?"  The girls swam to shore uncovered their necklaces hidden in the sand, laughing as they returned to the village.  Dazi ran down the river hoping to find the necklace.  While she was searching, a voice from the water told her to jump into the pool. Trusting the voice she jumps, but lands on dry land under the water.  There she meets an old woman, covered with sores. "Nurse my sores" she spoke. Dazi did as she was asked in return the old woman gave her a necklace far more beautiful than the one she lost. She also warned Dazi about the serpent like water spirit who kept her captive.  Returning to the village everyone was in awe of the new necklace.  The mean girls ran to the river.  They found the old woman who asked them also to nurse her wounds, but they laughed at her and demanded she give them necklaces like Dazi's.    While talking to the old woman, the river spirit came home and ate the girls.  The villagers all assumed they drowned swimming. Moral: Kindness has it own rewards.

Giving Your All

Two boys were best of friends.  One of the boys invited his friend to attend a church service with him. Each week the boy learned about how God loved him.  He learned that God even allowed his son Jesus to die upon the cross of Calvary to pay for our sins.  Each week the boy watched as people stood up and placed money in the offering plate, as the pastor tallked about God's love. The boy watched as people placed an offering in the plate.  The boy was sad and wished he had something to give. One Sunday the boy came to church really excited.  He waited paitently until offering time. When his row went around the offering plate, he did a strange thing. He jumped up on the table into the plate.  The pastor asked the boy why he jumped into the plate?  The boy told the pastor, "I don't have any money to give to God, so I gave what I have, me! So I am giving God my all."

Python and Lizard

Python and Lizard were the best of friends. Lizard was the best singer in the village, and Python was the best dancer.  But they were equal drummers.  Drums were rare in ancient times and Python owned the only drum in the village.  So at festivals Python would drum and Lizard would sing. Then Lizard would drum and Python would dance. A visiting king heard Lizard drumming and invited him to come to his village and play for his birthday celebration.  The King didn't know the drum belonged to Python.  Lizard needed to borrow Python's drum, but he knew that Python wouldn't let him take the drum so far away.  So Lizard asked Python if he could use his drum to practice. Python let him borrow the drum.  Lizard was such a hit at the birthday celebration he was asked to stay two more weeks.  When Python went to get his drum from Lizard house, his wife told Python the truth about Lizard and the drum.  When Lizard returned he decided that the drum should belong to him and he was keeping the drum. When Python came for the drum Lizard climbed a tree and refused to give it back.   The branch of the tree broke sending both Lizard and the drum into the river. Quickly Python uses his tail to get the drum out of the water, and then he reaches out to save Lizard who cannot swim.  Python's powerful tail squeezed Lizard causing his eyes to bulge. The two made up, but Python never let Lizard borrow his drum again. From that day to this lizards have bulging eyes.

The Suspect

Once there was a king who had a beautiful cowtail switch.  It was created by a master artist, and was the envy of many kings and nobles.  The king holds a celebration that draws people from several neighboring villages. For three days there was dancing, and singing, and drumming, and kora playing and feasting.  At the end of the festival everyone was gone, but so was the cowtail switch.  A reward was offered for the return of the beautiful switch.  In a nearby village a traveling jali who attended the festival was visiting, and people in the village began to question him. The jali answered their questions by quoting proverbs and riddles.  The people said he must have done it. "If he was innocent we would have just said so".  Days and nights passed, the people people watched with growing suspicion. They looked at him as he played his kora, and told his stories, certain he was the thief.  One day a messenger came from the king's village. Turned out the king hid the switch and forgot where he hid it.  Everyone was relieved that the king;s cowtail switch was  found.  Now they looked at the jali with new eyes, "Anyone who looks at him can see he is an honest man.  You can hear it in his music, proverbs and riddles."  Moral:  The truth will always prevail.

A Man Named "Time"

There once was a rich man named Time.  He had more money, more cattle, more grain, more of everything than anyone in all of Africa.  His reputation was known from Timbuktu to Accra.  Distant tribes sent messengers to meet Time.  It was said that "A man who hadn't seen Time hadn't really lived".  But Time grew old, and his fortunes changed.  Time lost his money, his cattle, his farms, his everything. He became as a beggar. Not just a beggar but the poorest of beggars.  Travelers from a far off land came to meet Time, the man of untold wealth.  The Travelers meet a beggar at the village gate, "Is the the village of  Time the wealthiest man in all of Africa?"  "Yes Time lives here" said the beggar. Once in the village they asked where could they find Time.  A man pointed to the beggar that had met at the gate.  Disappointed that Time was not the man they were expecting to see, the travelers spoke to Time. "What shall we tell our people about Time", they asked?  Time thought for a moment and said "Tell them at Time ain't what it used to be!" Moral: Time changes things

Ol' John out farms the Devil

The Devil forced Ol' John to plow his fields.  The Devil told Ol' John he could have what grew on the top of the ground and the Devil would take what grew under the ground.  Ol' John decided to plant wheat.  When harvest time come around, John cut his wheat, took it to market,and made lots of money.  The Devil took the roots to market but nobody would buy them, in fact they all laughed at him.  Next season, the Devil decided to out trick Ol' John and told him this time I will take what's grown above the ground and John had to take what's grown below.  To make sure he won, the devil was the first to harvest the tops of those plants and take them to market to sell. People laughed at the Devil so that he never came back to town again. You see this time John planted yams.  Ol' John never had problems out of the Devil again.  Moral: You reap what you sow.