The Mouse in the City and the Mouse in the Country Aesop’s Fables 3

Once upon a time, a town mouse travelled to the country to see a relative who resided there. The country mouse offered a meal consisting of wheat stalks, roots, and acorns, along with a splash of cold water for a beverage. The Town Mouse ate very little, simply nibbling on a little bit of this and a little bit of that, and it was quite clear from the way that she behaved that the only reason she ate the basic food was to be kind.

Following their lunch, the two friends engaged in a lengthy conversation, or more specifically, the town mouse informed the country mouse about her life in town while the country mouse listened. After that, they retired to bed in a warm nest in the hedgerow, where they remained till dawn, sleeping in peace and happiness. The country mouse had a dream in which she became a town mouse, complete with all the comforts and joys of city life that her companion had described for her. This dream occurred while the country mouse was sleeping. Therefore, the next day, when the town mouse requested the country mouse to accompany her back to the city for the night, she enthusiastically agreed.

They discovered the remnants of a very elegant dinner spread out on the table in the dining room when they arrived at the townhouse in which the Town Mouse had made his home. There were candies and jams, cakes and excellent cheeses; in fact, there was a wide variety of the most enticing meals that a mouse could possibly think of. But just as the country mouse was ready to take a piece of the delicate pastry, she heard a cat loudly meowing and scratching at the door. The mice, overcome with terror, scrambled to find a spot to hide, where they remained motionless for a considerable amount of time, hardly daring to take a breath. When they had finally worked up the courage to return to the feast, the door suddenly opened, and there before them was the house dog, followed by the servers who had been sent to clear the table.

The country mouse stayed back in the house of the town mouse only to retrieve her carpet bag and umbrella.

As she rushed away, she added, “You may have luxuries and dainties that I do not have, but I prefer my plain food and simple life in the country with the serenity and security that go with it.”

Being poor but secure is preferable to being wealthy but living in constant worry and insecurity.