The hyena and his wife

Once upon a time a hyena and a fox were neighbors. The hyena and the fox owned many different animals (like humans own animals), but the fox had less than the hyena. The fox made the hyena love her, and after awhile the hyena asked the fox to marry him. She quickly said yes, and they got married.

One day the fox left home while the hyena was sleeping. She went to the lion who needed someone to take care of his animals for the day because he was tired.

The fox asked the lion, “Are you tired today?” The lion said, “Yes, I’m tired.” The fox spoke softly and sweetly to the lion. “Go get some sleep. I’ll keep your animals for the day.” The lion said, “Will you watch them really well ?” “Oh, yes I will,” said the fox.”

The fox ate the lion’s fattest sheep. Then she took a little meat, and returned home where the hyena was still sleeping. When she went into her house she spread some blood from the meat on the sleeping hyena’s mouth.

Then she ran back to the lion’s animals. The lion came a little while after, while the fox was watching the animals. He counted the animals, and he saw that the fattest sheep was gone. The lion asked the fox what happened to the sheep, and she said, “The hyena ate it. I tried to protect it, but I couldn’t.”

The lion ran very fast to find the hyena. He saw the blood on the hyena’s mouth, and believed what the fox said. The lion killed the hyena. The fox then had all the animals, and she got rid of her husband.
Lesson: Never trust a greedy person, or for this matter a greed wife.

Source: Somali Folktale by Lyndale School Project