The frog and the scorpion

Once upon a time,
there was a scorpion which came to a river.
It wanted to cross the river to reach the other side of the bank.
But the scorpion was very afraid of water as it could not swim.

Just as the scorpion was about to give up its endeavour,
a frog surfaced from the river and landed nimbly on a leaf floating on the river.
"Good day to you my friend. Do you want to cross this river?"
The frog asked.

"Yes, I want to cross to the other side where they say there's food aplenty. But I can't swim. I'll never be able to make it across alive." THe scorpin replied dejectedly.

"Well, I can ferry you to the other side," The frog offered. " But, I'm afraid of the sting on your tail. Grandmother has warned me about how poisonous the stings of your likes are."

"Don't worry," The scorpion assured the frog. "I promise I won't hurt you if you give me a ride across the river."

"Promise?" The frog asked meekly.

" Yes, I promise. If I sting you during the ride, we'll both drown, won't we? Why would I want that to happen?" The scorpion replied.

Thus, an agreement was reached between the frog and the scorpion. The scorpion eased itself onto the frog's back and steadied itself. " Ready?" The frog asked. " Yes, I'm ready." The scorpion replied.

The pair entered the water slowly and the ride of their lifetime soon began.

The journey was smooth initially. Suddenly, the water currents became more rapid and the pair was swept along with it. " Oh no! Oh no! I'm going to die! I haven't even got a wife yet. Oh no oh no!" The scorpion shrieked hysterically. " Relax, this happens all the time. We'll make it across. Fret not." Before the frog could finish its sentence, the scorpion sunk its deadly sting into the frog's back instinctively.

"Why did you do that for?" The frog asked weakly. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to do it..." the scorpion trailed off.

As the pair went down slowly under the waters, the last they ever saw was the other end of the river bank. So near, yet so far.

---The End---

I heard about this story from one of my greatest buddy.
The moral of the story?

Just as a leopard will never change its spots, we often do what we are most accustomed to, despite knowing very well what is in store for us.
Even if millions of promises are made,
all of them will prove to be empty.

The only way to change...is from within.
When the determination to do so takes root in our hearts,
no matter how strong the currents outside maybe,
we will never get shaken.

This is, my promise to you.