The North Wind and the Sun

The North Wind boasted that no one could resist him. The Sun listened until a traveler appeared on the road below, walking with a cloak wrapped around his shoulders.

“Let us settle it,” said the Wind. “Whoever makes that man remove his cloak is the stronger.”

The Sun agreed and drew behind a cloud.

The Wind began with a brisk gust. The traveler's cloak flapped, and he caught it at the throat. The Wind blew harder. Dust raced across the road; branches bent over the ditch. The traveler lowered his head and held the cloth more tightly.

Angry now, the Wind poured all his strength into one freezing blast. The man stopped beside a wall, turned his back, and pulled the cloak around him as if it were a second skin.

At last the Wind ran out of breath.

The Sun emerged. He did not hurry. A little warmth returned to the stones. The traveler stepped out from the wall and resumed his journey.

As the road grew pleasant, the man loosened the fastening at his neck. Soon he opened the cloak. When the midday light lay warm across the fields, he slipped it from his shoulders and folded it over his arm.

The Wind watched in silence.

“You see,” said the Sun, “he was not waiting to be defeated. He was waiting to be comfortable.”

Below them, the traveler walked on, grateful for the fine weather and unaware that anyone had won a contest.