Why
Bat Hangs Upside Down
A Laotian Folktale
A
long time ago Bat came to visit Bird. As they were talking,
Bat said, “I must be a bird, too. I have wings and
I fly very well. We should live together.”
“Very well,” said Bird cheerfully, and for a time they flew about quite happily.
One day Bird said, “Now it is time to build nests. Please help me make a nest.”
But
Bat did not like the idea. The truth is, he was lazy. “You
know, I have been thinking,” he said. “Perhaps
I’m not a bird. I may be a rat. I’ll go and live
with Rat.”
“Yes, you may be a rat,” said Bird. “Good-bye.”
So Bat went to see Rat. “I have nice dark fur like yours,” Bat said. “I have ears like yours, too. I think I am a rat. May I come and live with you?”
“You have a nice face,” said Rat. “Yes, certainly. Come and live with me.”
For a time they played peacefully together. “Now we must dig a hole,” said Rat.
“Why would we want to do that?” asked Bat.
“Why, to make our nest, of course,” said Rat.
But Bat did not like the idea. As you know, he was lazy. “Have you noticed my wings?” he asked. “I am really a bird. I must go live with Bird.”
When
Bat returned to Bird, she had finished the nest all by herself
and didn’t want lazy Bat to live with her. She looked
at him and said, “You are not a bird. You have ears
and fur. Go away and live with Rat.”
Again Bat came to Rat, who was busy digging. Rat said, “You are not a rat. You have wings. Go back to Bird.”
Back and forth flew Bat until both Bird and Rat got tired of him. They told him, “Bat, you are lazy. Go away and find a nice cave. Since you can’t decide whether to be a bird in the air or a rat on the ground, you can hang upside down between the sky and the earth.”
Poor Bat! That’s exactly what he did. To this day bats live in caves, hanging upside down. And because they don’t want to meet Bird or Rat, they come out only at night to hunt for food.
