Once upon a time there lived a mouse. He had a beautiful daughter. The old mouse had set his mind on finding a man worthy to marry his daughter. He had to be the most powerful one in the world. So he went to the sun and said, "You are the most powerful in the world, you burn those you hate and warm those you love, I want you to marry my daughter."

The sun said, "There is one who is more powerful than I am: when a cloud comes and covers me up, I can't warm anybody any more."

The mouse then went to the cloud and asked him, "You must be the strongest in the world? I want you to marry my daughter."

But the cloud said, "No, I'm not the strongest: when the wind blows me apart there's none of me left."

The mouse went to have a talk with the wind. "If you, cloud-blower, are the strongest in the world, I want you to marry my daughter."

The wind was proud of his own might, but said that the wall must be even stronger because he couldn't blow it down.

The mouse went to the wall. "Hey there, you must be the strongest in the world. I want you to marry my daughter."

But the wall replied, "I am big and strong, but small animals are stronger than I am: rats and mice gnaw holes in me and I can't do anything to stop them."

And the mouse's daughter did marry the strongest man in the world: another mouse.

David Bocchi

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