Long ago there was a woodcutter. The woodcutter worked twice as hard as the other woodcutters, because he wanted to give his parents all the good things. But the woodcutter had always made enough money to buy rice and bread for his parents.
Sake was an alcoholic drink that the woodcutter could not afford to take for his parents.
One day early in the morning the woodcutter climbed a steep mountain to find the best wood. None of the other woodcutters accompanied this woodcutter because it was very difficult to climb this mountain.
The woodcutter worked alone at the top of the mountain and soon he had a good pile of logs.
By afternoon, the woodcutter was tired. He rested under a tree. There the woodcutter saw a badger.
The woodcutter wanted to kill the badger and take it back home for his parents to eat. However, the more the woodcutter saw the badger, the less he wanted to kill the animal. He did not have the heart to kill a sleeping creature that was much smaller than him.
The woodcutter sighed and shook his head. ‘I will earn more money to buy some meat for my parents. I will not kill this badger.’
The woodcutter made his decision and got up.
The badger turned to him and it almost seemed like the badger had divined his thoughts. “You have made a wise decision.”
The woodcutter was stunned to hear the badger speak and he dropped his axe in fear.
The badger was not yet done. “I am more useful to you alive than dead.”
Adapted from Japanese Folktales
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