The North Wind and the Sun--an Aesop Fable

This version is from the book by Jerry Pinkney:
"Of everything in the sky--the sun and the stars, the rain and the snow--the North Wind boasted that he was the strongest. "There is nothing that can resist me! the North Wind cried, blowing such a blast that the roofs lost their shingles and streams turned to ice.
'Are you sure?' asked the Sun. 'The sky and the land are full of strong things. Why, it might even be that I am stronger than you!'
'You?' roared the North Wind, and laughed an icy laugh.
'Yes, why not? Let's put it to the test!' answered the Sun. 'Do you see that traveler down below us? I'm sure I can make him take off his cloak. Are you strong enough to do the same?'
'Of course!' blustered the North Wind. He sent howling blasts of frigid air to tear the cloak away from the traveler. But the man, shivering in the cold, only wrapped the cloak tighter around himself. No gust that the North Wind blew could rip it from his grasp.
'Now it is my turn,' said the Sun. And he sent warm beams of light down to where the traveler was walking. The man sighed with relief and pushed his cloak back off his shoulders. Steadily the Sun shone, until the traveler pulled off his hat, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and at last took the cloak and lay down to rest in the shade of a nearby tree."
"Gentle persuasion succeeds where force fails." I love this story! It holds such wisdom. It reminds me of the Yiddish proverb, "You can catch more flies with honey, than with vinegar."
This is my philosophy. Kindness will get us further than meanness.