The Crow and the Pitcher

A Crow, parched with terrible thirst on a hot summer's day, flew about the countryside seeking water. At last, he discovered a large pitcher standing in the yard of a house, and he hastened toward it, hoping to drink. But when he peered into the vessel, he found that the water lay far below the rim, beyond the reach of his beak, no matter how he stretched his neck. Distressed and despairing, the Crow sat upon the ground and contemplated his predicament. His thirst was great, yet the water seemed as distant as the clouds themselves. He might have abandoned the pitcher in defeat and flown onward, but instead, he remained and pondered the difficulty before him. As he sat thus, his eyes fell upon some small pebbles scattered upon the ground nearby. An idea stirred within his mind—a thought born not from his own nature or instinct, but from careful observation and reasoning. What if he were to drop these pebbles into the pitcher? Would they not displace the water and bring it closer to the surface? With this thought, the Crow began to docilely apply himself to the task. One by one, he picked up the pebbles in his beak and dropped them into the pitcher. Each pebble sank into the water with a soft splash, causing the water level to rise incrementally. The Crow persisted in this labor, never doubting that his method would prove sound, receiving instruction from his own reasoning and the evidence before his eyes. At last, after many repetitions of this humble task, the water rose sufficiently that the Crow could reach it with his beak. He drank deeply and fully, quenching the terrible thirst that had tormented him. In his docility to the lessons of observation and reason, the Crow had transformed an impossible situation into one of triumph.