The Monkey and the Hare's Banana Grove

A Monkey and a Hare owned a banana grove (kihamba) together. The Monkey, being able to climb, could easily harvest the bananas, while the Hare could not. The Monkey promised to share the harvest equally. However, when the bananas were ripe, the Monkey would climb up, eat the best ones, and throw down only the small, unripe, or bruised ones for the Hare. The Hare grew tired of this unfair treatment. He went into the grove one night and coated the trunk of the best banana tree with sticky, slippery sap. The next day, the Monkey tried to climb his favourite tree, but he kept sliding down. He tried again and again, getting covered in the sticky sap, but he could not reach the fruit. The Hare, watching from the bushes, called out, "It seems the tree has decided that its fruit should fall to the ground for everyone to share, not just be taken by those who can climb." The Monkey, shamed and sticky, had to agree to a fairer system of sharing, and the Hare finally got his equal share of the harvest.