The Grasshopper and the Ants

One day in spring a grasshopper was relaxing when he saw a long line of ants carry food. He asked them what they were doing, they said they were storing food for winter and that he should too. The grasshopper declined and said it was only spring and he had heaps of time to do that later. All through the spring all the grasshopper did was eat, sleep and play. He got extremely fat.

Another day during the summer, the grasshopper was lazing around when he saw the same long line of ants carry food. Once again he asked them where they were taking their food, they said they were storing food in their nest for winter and that he should too. The grasshopper declined and said it was only summer and he had all the food he needed right now and he would have lots of time to do that later. All through the summer all the grasshopper did was eat, sleep and play. He got even fatter.

When the leaves began to fall from the trees the grasshopper knew it was autumn. Among the leaves he saw the ants once again. For the third time he asked them what they were doing, they said they were storing food for winter and that he should too. The grasshopper declined and said that it was too much work and he was sure he’d be able to find some food in winter.

Weeks later winter had come, the snow was very thick but it was no problem for the ants because they had lots of food and a nest to keep them healthy. The grasshopper however was very cold and very hungry because he couldn’t find any food.

After winter was over the grasshopper had learnt a valuable lesson, to prepare for the future.

Moral: Work today for what you will need tomorrow.