Thousands and thousands of years ago, the sun, bored of living alone, decided to get married. The time to start a family and settle down had arrived and to celebrate it, he organized a massive party to which he invited the animals of the land.
The idea got everyone excited! The little ant, the elephant, the whale … No animal wanted to miss the appointment and they ran to get beautiful to be the first to arrive!
Well, this is not entirely true … There was one who, as soon as he heard the news, ran off to hide under his bed, scared to death. It was a small white hedgehog with a brown snout.
His neighbors, outraged and quite surprised by his attitude, went in search of him to convince him that he could not make the great sun that ugly.
The frog said:
– Friend, you have to go to the wedding. The sun has invited you and you cannot miss it!
The tiger also instigated him:
– The sun will be very sad if you don’t go. We live thanks to the light and warmth that it gives us. Not going to your link is very rude!
The rabbits, the zebras, the vultures … They all approached to speak with the stubborn hedgehog who, under such insistence, accepted.
– Okay, okay, leave me alone! I promise I will go!
Before the wedding was formalized, the wedding banquet that the sun had organized with great enthusiasm took place. The animals arrived and, excited, they sat at the table to taste delicious food and the best wines in the world.
The sun was, never better said, beaming, and the guests seemed to be enjoying themselves. The only one who was still contrite was the hedgehog, who did not want to taste a single crumb of bread. In fact, as soon as he arrived, he ran to a corner and thinking that no one was seeing him, he began to gnaw on a stone.
The groom, who was very attentive to everything, noticed and approached him.
– Friend hedgehog, can I know what you are doing there alone eating a stone? I have had a delicious meal prepared for all of you and I don’t understand why you don’t participate in my party with everyone else. Is there something you don’t like?
The hedgehog stopped nibbling on the pebble and looked at him ruefully.
– Sir, excuse me, but I confess that I am extremely worried.
The sun looked surprised.
– Wow … And why are you worried?
The little animal spoke very sincerely.
– It is that since he announced his wedding I have not stopped thinking about the consequences. You give us warmth, a wonderful warmth to live on earth, but if you marry and have several sun children, we will die burned. The living beings of planet earth will not be able to bear the heat of several suns at the same time! The grass will not grow and the trees will dry up. Rivers and seas will also evaporate … and our beautiful planet will become a desert.
Then the hedgehog lowered his head sadly and muttered:
– That’s why I eat stones, to get used to what awaits me if I manage to survive.
The sun was silent and deep in thought. The hedgehog was very right and made him rethink his decision. He couldn’t risk destroying so much life and so much beauty!
He walked to stand in the middle of the banquet, clapped his hands for silence, and spoke to everyone in attendance.
– I want to tell you something very important. I have had a conversation with my friend the hedgehog and I just decided that I am not going to get married anymore. The wedding is canceled!
Silence took hold of the room. All the animals showed great sadness and some too sensitive, such as kittens and fawns, began to cry.
The sun, very sure of the step he had taken, continued his speech.
– I know it saddens you, but think about it: it would be dangerous for all of you if I got married and had several children, because the light and heat that we would give off would be incompatible with life on Earth. Believe me, it’s the best for everyone. I’m over with the celebration! Please go home.
Everyone present, who was having a great time, looked at the hedgehog with hatred, because of him they had missed the best party of their life!
The entire fauna got up to give him what he deserved as a traitor, but the hedgehog, who didn’t have a hair for a fool, hid himself and no one managed to find him. After two hours of unfortunate search, the species left the place and went home to sleep.
When there was not a soul left in the room, the hedgehog came out of its hiding place and came face to face with the sun.
– I’m afraid your friends are angry with you, but I am very grateful to you for the good advice you gave me. I’m going to give you something that will come in handy from now on. Here, put them on, let’s see how they fit you!
The sun gave him long, sharp spikes to place on his back.
– When someone messes with you, you no longer need to hide; You can curl yourself into a ball and the spikes will protect you.
– Thank you very much, it is a wonderful gift. See you soon, sir!
The hedgehog returned home feeling more handsome and above all, more secure. Since that day, as you well know, she has a body full of spikes.
The sun, for its part, continued with his life in solitude until today, but he never regretted having made that intelligent and generous decision.
