The Ant and the Grasshopper

In the warm days of summer, the fields lay bright under the sun. A little ant rose early and carried grain after grain toward her nest. Sometimes the path was rough, sometimes a pebble blocked her way, and sometimes the load seemed larger than herself. Still she went on steadily, for she knew that winter, though far off, would surely come.

Upon a blade of grass nearby sat a grasshopper, singing as if the whole world had been made for music. He saw the ant passing again and again and laughed. “Why do you toil so hard on such a fine day?” he asked. “Come, sing with me. The sun is shining, and there is time enough for everything.”

The ant paused only a moment. “The sun is shining,” she said, “and that is why I can work. When the fields are covered with snow, food will not be so easily found.” Then she lifted another grain and went her way.

The grasshopper shook his wings and returned to his song. All summer he sang, danced, and rested in the warm grass, while the ant filled her little storehouse. Autumn came; the leaves grew dry; the ant mended the entrance to her nest. The grasshopper still thought tomorrow would be much like today.

Then winter fell. Snow hid the fields, and the cold wind searched every hollow stem. The grasshopper found no food anywhere. Trembling and hungry, he came to the ant and begged for help.

The ant remembered his summer songs and her own warning. She did not mock his hunger, but she spoke plainly: “Song is a pleasant thing, but song alone will not fill an empty store.” The grasshopper bowed his head, understanding at last that glad days are safest when they walk beside wise preparation.