Once upon a time, there lived a tiger in a jungle. He was the only tiger in the jungle, and the only striped animal there. Nobody  wanted to play with him because he was so different with his stripes.

     The tiger was very sad, and didn’t want his stripes anymore. One day, he had an amazing idea! He would visit the Great Wise Owl to get rid of his stripes!

He greeted the Great Wise Owl and pleaded with him. “Please, o’ Great Wise Owl, help me get rid of my stripes! Nobody in the entire jungle wants to play with me because of them!”. The Great Wise Owl was silent for a long time. Then he said, “Uniqueness is a great thing to have. Go now, and come back in a week. When you do, tell me whether you want to keep your stripes or not.”

The next day, the tiger came across a snake. The snake was crying. “Why are you crying, Snake?” asked the tiger. “ I want to count, but I don’t have any fingers or toes to do it!” wailed the snake. The tiger thought for some time. Then he said, “Hey, you can count my stripes!.“What a splendid idea! screamed the snake in excitement. “One… Two… Three… Four… Five! Thanks, Tiger!”  The tiger smiled and went on his way.

What other surprises would the jungle hold?…