Aesop Cover

Bearing Insults – No. 7. The Bear and the Bees – The Essential Aesop™ – Back to Basics Abridgment Series

“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” Leonardo da Vinci. Adopted by Steve Jobs.

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A large Bear, proudly showing his prowess to his friends, came upon a tree in which the Bees had stored their honey.

As he began to nose around, one of the Bees stung him sharply.

The Bear was insulted by the sting and became infuriated at the little Bee. So, the Bear attacked the log with all his might. But this only brought out more Bees, attacking him relentlessly.

Incapable of refuting all of the little Bees, and now bearing the stings of the swarm, the Bear had no choice but to make a run for it. And so, alas, the Bear now had to escape in front of all his friends, jumping into a nearby pond.

Moral of the Story: It is sometimes wiser for us to endure the small insult, which is forgotten, rather than to incite further attack risking our reputation. Restrain, don’t react.

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Introduction – The Essential Aesop – Epilogue

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Why We Loved It: This fable is particularly relevant in today’s social media environment. The ease of the jibe online today. The problem is that, to combat that little insult simply validates its purpose, inciting the Hydra of hit and runs. We are reminded by this fable that it can be better to let the injury die in its own course of time, rather than to escalate it and to bring more attention to it. “That which is not weak, does not have to defend itself, its strength lies in the truth.

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© 2013 Gregg Zegarelli, Esq. and Arnold Zegarelli. Gregg can be contacted through LinkedIn. Arnold Zegarelli can be contacted through Facebook.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/bearing-insults-7-bear-bees-essential-aesop-back-zegarelli-esq-

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