The North Wind and the Sun were high in the sky. As usual, the North Wind was bragging to the Sun.
"Watch me blow away these clouds," he said. "I'm really strong—much stronger than you."
He blew hard and all the clouds scattered.
"See?" the North Wind said with a grin. "I'm the strongest one in the sky!"
The Sun smiled. "I'm strong too," she said.
"Ha-ha!" The North Wind laughed loudly. "You? Strong? You're always gentle, not strong!"
Just then the Sun spotted a man walking along the road. The man was wearing a warm coat.
"Let's have a contest," the Sun said. "The one who makes that man remove his coat is the strongest."
"Sure," the North Wind said, laughing again. "That will be easy for me. I'll just blow that coat right off him. Watch this!"
The North Wind blew hard. On the road below, dust and leaves flew everywhere.
"Oh!" The man shivered. "What a chilly wind!"
"That's odd." The North Wind frowned as the man buttoned up his coat. "The coat is still on him. I'll try again."
The North Wind blew again, this time even harder.
But once more, the coat stayed on the man.
"Phew!" By now the North Wind was out of breath and very tired.
"Oh well," the Sun said gently. "I guess it's my turn."
She moved closer to the man.
"What strange weather," the man said, unbuttoning his coat. "Now it's lovely out!"
The Sun beamed even more brightly.
"Ahh. It's so warm," the man said. "It feels wonderful."
"Oh no!" the North Wind cried as the man removed his coat.
The Sun smiled. "I guess I won the contest."
"Hmpf!" The North Wind said, taking off.
Below, the man was resting peacefully under a tree. The Sun kept him warm as he slept.
"Poor North Wind," the Sun thought. "Someday he'll realize something. It's often better to be gentle than to blow with great strength."