ReTold

A young brave left his tribe one spring morning. It was his turn to prove his manhood. He carried nothing with him, save the clothes on his back. His instructions were to climb the tallest mountain he could and spend the night there. If he returned, he would be accepted as a man.
His eyes scanned the horizon, assessing the various mountains within view. He chose one that towered above the rest, peaked with snow, and set off toward it. It took him three days to reach the base. The valley around him was lush and fertile. It beckoned him to stay and take his ease, but he resolutely began to climb. By the end of the first day, he was becoming tired. By the end of the second day, his legs were sore. As the third day drew to a close, he still seemed an impossible distance from the top of the mountain and his hands were raw. He paused to catch his breath and sank down on a fallen log.
"Brother, help me."
The young brave looked up, startled. There was no one in sight. He frowned.
"Brother, help me." The voice was smooth and pleasant to hear.
He looked down, and there, on the ground by the log, was a sleek, beautifully colored, shiny snake. The brave tensed and slowly moved out of reach. Then he noticed that the snake wasn't moving.
"Brother, help me," the snake said a third time.
"Why should I help you?" the brave demanded incredulously.
"I am frozen, nearly to death. I tried to climb the mountain so that I may prove myself, like you, but I am unable to finish. If I stay here much longer, I shall die. Please, brother. Tuck me in your shirt where I will be warm and carry me to the valley."
The brave looked at him warily. "No. I know what you are. You are a rattlesnake, a poisonous creature bound to do me harm at the first opportunity."
"Not so," the snake protested. "Look at me. I am nearly dead. What harm could I possible bring you?"
"Your mouth seems to be functioning, and within your mouth are your fangs."
"Not so," he said again. "I have sworn not to use them. I have changed my ways. I am no longer dangerous."
"I don't believe you."
"Are you not instructed to help all living creatures? If you saw a rabbit caught in a trap, would you leave the rabbit to die?"
"I--"
"If there were a deer with an arrow in his flank, left to die cruelly, would you turn your back on her suffering?"
"I--"
"These are living creatures. Am I no different? Am I to deserve death on account of what my wayward brothers have done? Please, my brother, tuck me in your shirt. Keep me warm. Carry me to the valley, or I shall die."
"But I must reach the top of the mountain!" The brave reached desperately for excuses.
"The mountain will still be here tomorrow. You will have time to reach the top. And I know the secret to a special remedy that will give you the strength and stamina to climb the mountain in but one day. The ingredients are in the valley at the base of the mountain. Take me, brother, and I will give you strength in return for my life."
To scale the mountain in one day? Imagine what stories could be told at home around the campfire. In truth, the snake was frozen nigh to death. He had not moved once during the conversation. The snake had promised not to harm him. And the brave knew that he must protect all living creatures.
"Do I have your oath that you will not harm me?"
"Brothers," the snake almost purred, "do not hurt each other. Help me live, and I will give you secrets beyond imagination."
The brave looked up toward the snow-capped peak of the mountain, then down at the beautiful snake. He reached down and picked up the frozen animal, and tucked him beneath the folds of his shirt, then turned and started back down the mountain.
Two days he walked, talking with the snake. The snake was a marvellous conversationalist and was willing to listen to all the youth's problems and offer his advice. He understood everything that was going on in the brave's life.
They reached the base of the mountain, and the youth stepped out into the lush valley. The snake had regained its strength and was able to move. The youth took him out of his shirt and crouched to set him gently on the ground.
"Now, brother snake, you must help me."
The snake looked up at him with cold black eyes. "Indeed, I shall." He slithered into a coil, raised his head, and darted at the youth. Deadly fangs sank into his arm.
The world seemed to waver, and horror filled the young man. "Brother snake! How could you? I helped you. I saved your life. You promised to help me!"
The snake's black eyes raked up and down the dying man. "But, brother--You have no one to blame but yourself. You knew what I was when you picked me up."
The snake slithered off as the young boy slipped off into eternity at the base of the mountain.

When he did not return, the elders of his tribe knew that while their teachings had reached the young man's ears, they had not reached his heart.