The Mouse Trap

A little mouse learns a big secret about life, which can help us all

A mouse looked through a crack in the wall and saw the farmer and his wife open a package. “What food might this contain?” the mouse wondered.

But when it was opened, he was devastated to discover it was a mousetrap.

Retreating to the farmyard, the mouse proclaimed the warning, “There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!”

The chicken clucked and scratched, raised her head and said, “Mr. Mouse, I can tell this is a grave concern to you, but it is of no consequence to me. I cannot be bothered by it.”

The mouse turned to the sheep and told him, “There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!”

The sheep sympathized, by saying, “I am so very sorry, Mr. Mouse.” Then he added, “However, there is nothing I can do about it but pray. Be assured you are in my prayers.”

The mouse turned to the cow and said, “There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!” The cow said, “Wow, Mr. Mouse. I'm sorry for you, but it's no skin off my nose.”

Disappointed, the mouse returned to the house, head down and dejected, to face the farmer's mousetrap alone.

That very night, a sound was heard in the house - like the sound of a mousetrap catching its prey.

The farmer's wife rushed to see what was caught, but in the darkness, she did not see it was a venomous snake whose tail was caught by the trap.

Suddenly, the snake bit the farmer's wife.

The farmer rushed her to the hospital for help, but when she returned home she had a fever.
Everyone knows that the best way to treat a fever is with fresh chicken soup, so the farmer took his hatchet to the farmyard to get the soup's main ingredient.

But his wife's sickness continued, so friends and neighbors came to sit with her around the clock. To feed them all, the farmer had to butcher the sheep.

Still, the farmer's wife did not get well and one day, she died. So many people came to her funeral that the farmer had to slaughter his cow to provide enough meat for everyone.

Meanwhile, the mouse looked upon it all from his crack in the wall, shaking his head sadly.

So, the next time you hear someone is facing a problem and think it doesn't concern you, remember: when one of us is threatened, we are all at risk.

We are all involved in this journey called Life. We must keep an eye out for one another and make an extra effort to support each other.

Each of us is a vital thread in another person's tapestry; our lives are woven together for a reason.