During my elementary years, children were required to do a lot of reading. Aside from the usual fantasy or fairyland tales, many of our assignments were stories that ended with a moral. They were designed to capture the imagination of a youngster while demonstrating the value of good judgment. Most of us recall the story about the three little pigs or the turtle and the hare, but the one that stands out most in my mind is the story about the sun and the north wind and how they finally resolved who was the most powerful. Unfortunately, I don’t remember this story too clearly, but I will try to relate it to the best of my ability. Being emotional, however, I would like the sender’s patient indulgence for any liberties I might take along this way. Once upon a time, North Wind and Sun were having a serious argument. Actually, it wasn’t really an argument; it was really an argument that North Wind was trying to instigate. It all started when North Wind, out of the clear blue sky and without provocation, jumped on top of a passing cloud and started hollering up to Sun. "Hey, up there, is that all you know how to do?" At first the sun said nothing. She was very familiar with the North Wind’s unpredictable temperament. Heck, she’d been watching him ranting and raving from the beginning of time. North Wind, on the other hand, wasn’t affected with Sun’s overbearing patience, so he continued goading her. "Hey, ‘Butter Ball,’ cat got yer tongue?" North Wind must’ve thought that what he had just said was funny. He started laughing so hard that he almost started a hurricane. Finally, after a few more side remarks which indicated that a confrontation was inevitable, Sun responded. "What’s your problem, North Wind--something’s bothering you--what is it?" "You bet something’s bothering me," North Wind replied. "Everybody says you’re the most powerful thing in the sky, yet I don’t ever remember seeing you do anything. You never move; all you do is hang and shine." "Why should that bother you," asked the Sun passively? "Want me to tell you why? I’ll tell you why Butter Ball, cause I’s the most powerful thing in the sky--I am," North Wind challenged. "And if we could determine which of us was the more powerful, would you be willing to accept the outcome, one way or the other?" "You bet I would," replied North Wind with a sarcastic air of confidence. "OK, I have a simple way or settling this issue," offered the Sun. "Do you see that old Armenian walking down there toward the village of the city of Bitlis?" "Of course," replied the North Wind somewhat confused. "Good," said the Sun. "Let’s see if you can make him take off his coat." Take off his coat? North Wind couldn’t believe his ears. What was blowing a coat off an old man’s back compared to the hurricanes or tornadoes he had generated. Was Sun losing it; hadn’t she seen the countless trees he’d broken in half during a storm or the rock slides and avalanches he’d caused, especially on this Armenian Mountain -- on this very same mountain that the poor man walking had been living on for his entire mortal life? Hold on, this wasn’t the time to question Sun’s senility. He had made the challenge and Sun had chosen the means. North Wind didn’t wait for Sun to reconsider; he gorged himself with air and started to blow. Engetzee Chemmian, prodding along with his walking stick, was slowly making his way up a small hill when the initial gusts hit him. As he was being blown backward, he instinctively let go of his walking stick and started clutching his coat to better shield himself. When North Wind stopped to inhale, Engetzee found himself solidly wedged between two huge boulders. He looked down and realized that his sandals and trousers were missing but, thank God, he still had his coat. Naturally, North Wind’s second volley didn’t come as a surprise to the old man so when the second volley came, he had curled himself under the boulders and was clutching his coat even tighter. From that moment on, the harder North Wind blew, the more impregnable this old man became. Finally, after a few hours, North Wind realized that he was getting dangerously close to blowing off part of his own anatomy. Totally exhausted and completely out of breath, he grudgingly pulled himself onto a soft billowy cloud. "Your (puff) turn, Butter Ball. I - puff - got most of it - puff - off. I’ll - puff - puff- leave the - puff - coat for - puff - you." He was sure that Sun, who just hangs and does nothing, would not get the coat off. After all, he had blown away most of the old man’s clothes and there would be no question as to who was the most powerful. Sun said nothing; she just started smiling and the more she smiled, the more she radiated. Poor Engetzee, he didn’t know what to make of it. When the wind stopped, he was a shriveled, shivering mass of human flesh wrapped in a threadbare coat. As the rays of the sun warmed him, he slowly relaxed and sat up. He had never experienced such winds before, but thank God, the sun was shining again. After resting a short while longer, he rose to his feet. Scratched and bruised, he started walking toward Bitlis again. As Engetzee walked, the sun’s rays became warmer and he slowly started unbuttoning his coat. And, a little further down, as the sun’s rays became even warmer, he started taking off his coat. But, he suddenly stopped, realizing that without the coat he would be completely naked. Finally, to North Wind’s regret, Engetzee did take off his coat. which he quickly wrapped around his waist. Had the coat been a little longer, he may have decided to keep it on, but that was (pardon the pun) hindsight. North Wind reluctantly conceded. Sun truly was the most powerful thing in the sky. Moral: What we can’t do with force, we can oftentimes do through warmth and understanding. Seeing is believing. Joseph Vosbikian (Author's Note: This is a variation of Aesop's Fable.)