St. Peter replied, "That's a question only God can answer." So the zebra went off in search of God.
When he found Him, the zebra asked, "God, please -- I must know: Am I white with black stripes, or am I black with white stripes?"
God simply replied "You are what you are."
The zebra returned to see St. Peter once more, who asked him, "Well, did God answer your question?"
The zebra looked puzzled. "No sir. God simply said 'You are what you are.'"
St. Peter smiled and said to the zebra, "Well then, there's your answer. You are white with black stripes."
The zebra asked St. Peter, "How do you know that for certain?"
"Because," said St. Peter, "If you were black with white stripes, God would have said, 'You is what you is.'"
