Children are Wiser than Elders

It was rainy season in Russia. In a certain village in Russia the rain water was flowing in streams in a street. It had rained and stopped a little while ago. Two little girls were playing in the street water. It was festival time. They were wearing new frocks. Malasha was the younger of the two little girls. Akulya was the older girl.

Malasha stamped her foot in the water. It was a little muddy. The muddy water splashed. It fell on Akulya’s new frock. Akulya was just rubbing out the mud. At that time Akulya’s mother was walking that way. She looked at her daughter’s dress. She scolded her daughter.

“How can you make your new dress so dirty?” she asked.

“Malasha splashed the water on me, mother,” said Akulya.

Akulya’s mother caught Malasha. She gave two or three slaps on the back of Malasha. Malasha started weeping loudly. Malasha’s house was close by. Malasha’s mother heard her daughter Malasha’s weeping. She came out in hurry.

“Why are you weeping?” asked her mother.

“Akulya’s mother beat me on my back,” said Malasha.

Malasha’s mother turned to Akulya’s mother in an angry mood. Malasha’s mother abused Akulya’s mother. Soon they started quarrelling loudly. They called each other names. Their shouting continued.

Other women joined them soon. Some supported Akulya’s mother. Some supported Malasha’s mother. The two fighting groups became bigger and bigger. The men also joined in the fighting. The quarrel became never ending.

At that time the grandmother of Akulya came out of the house. She told the men and the women not to fight. “It is festival time. People should not quarrel,” she told them.

No one listened to her. No one cared for her words. In the meantime Malasha and Akulya forgot about their quarrel. They became friends again. They moved away from the fighting crowd. They started letting paper boats in the running water. Now the old woman said to the fighting groups.

“Look at the children. They have forgotten their quarrel. They have started playing again. They have become friends again. But you men and women still keep quarrelling. Are you not ashamed of your tendency?”

The men and the women looked at the little girls. They felt ashamed. They went back to their houses quietly.

Children forget and forgive very easily. The elders learnt this lesson from the little girls.