Andy Ant
A Fable
A troop of ants were returning to their hill marching along in a line, one behind the other. Aaron Ant was carrying a large piece of leaf, larger than any other ant carried, and he was having a hard time. As he walked, his feet would slam hard into the ground, raising a cloud of dust, and often his feet would slip and cast little pebbles into the air behind him.
Alex Ant was behind Aaron carrying a small piece of leaf and was walking in the dust cloud that Aaron was creating. Alex complained, “Why do I have to walk behind him? Why do I have to breathe the dust and get grit in my eyes?”
Andy Ant was behind Alex, carrying a normal size piece of leaf. He could see the dust cloud that Aaron was creating, but didn’t think it was as bad as Alex was making it out to be. So he offered to swap places with Alex, who gladly accepted his offer.
It wasn’t long before Aaron got very tired and slowed down, forming a gap between him and the ant in front of him. The sergeant ant came back and yelled at Aaron. “Close up this gap, keep up with the group. Move your feet, ant!”
Andy heard him and after the sergeant left, he offered to change the leaf he was carrying. “You have carried that one long enough, let me have a turn.” So Andy and Aaron swapped and they closed the gap.
But soon Andy got tired and started to slow down. Alex said, “That leaf is too big for one ant to carry. My leaf is small and will not be missed. Let me carry the leaf with you.” Andy agreed and together, they carried the leaf to the hill.
Aaron, Alex, and Andy became friends and often ate together and told each other stories. The other ants, who never spoke with each other, saw them and soon they had their own set of friends. The ant colony changed into an ant community.
Moral: Kindness can change the world
