Once there was a cicada with her friend the ant. The two interacted with summer in different ways. The insect considered it necessary to enjoy the beauty of the lovely summer season, which made her spend her time playing music, singing, laughing, and resting.
While the ant went about her work diligently, so that her work would not accumulate for difficult times. Every day of summer passed as it was for the insect enjoying her time and the ant working hard, until summer ended and autumn arrived.
The plants and food materials that were available in summer and spring began to diminish little by little. The cicada noticed the shortage of food she had, but the time had become very late. Then she remembered that the ant had been working well, so she went to her to ask for help after feeling hunger.
The cicada asked the ant to share her food with her, but the ant seemed very annoyed by the boldness of this insect who had not worked all summer. She said to her, “You do not know how difficult work is. You were only playing and laughing all summer. How dare you ask me for food? Also, there is no place for you in my house as you see, its size is small.”
In this way, the insect understood her foolishness. Her laziness from working in the summer season and her lack of good understanding of matters would deprive her of the feeling of happiness and enjoyment during the autumn and winter seasons. She had no choice but to spend harsh days in winter, surrounded by snow, looking for her food.
Note: “Cicada” is an insect known by this name because it produces a sound resembling the word “cicada.”
The wisdom from the story: Time is like money, so we must learn how to benefit from it and not waste it in vain in useless matters, as the cicada did. It is necessary to exploit this time in what is useful and beneficial so that we do not harm ourselves with laziness that brings destruction.
The story translated from the Spanish language titled: La cigarra y la hormiga