Aesop’s Fables – The Ant and the Dove

Once upon a time, a thirsty ant was roaming through the jungle, looking for water to drink. He soon reached the banks of a river and decided to drink water from here. As the ant went closer and closer towards the water, his foot slipped and he fell into the river. Soon, the gushing current of water began to wash him away. The ant did not know how to swim and he soon feared that he would die by drowning and hence he started to cry for help loudly.

At the same time, a dove was sitting on a tree near the river and he heard the ant’s cries for help. The dove called out to the ant and then he dropped a leaf from the tree. The ant understood his plan and climbed onto the leaf. The leaf drifted ashore and the ant climbed back onto the ground. But immediately, the ant saw something suspicious happening far behind the dove.

A hunter had set up camp and was aiming his bow and arrow at the dove. The ant could not shout loud enough to alert the dove and so he began to run quickly towards the hunter. Time was running out as the hunter was taking careful aim of the dove. The ant ran as fast as he could because the dove’s life depended on him. The ant did not want his saviour to die and so he rushed forth with all his speed.

As the hunter was about to shoot his arrow, the ant leapt onto the hunter’s foot and bit him hard. The hunter screamed in pain and he released the arrow unconsciously. The arrow missed its mark and hit the tree. The dove heard the commotion behind him and he flew away. As he flew away, he looked back and saw the ant running away from the hunter’s foot. The dove then followed the ant from above and landed in front of him when they were safely away from the hunter. They both thanked each other for their timely help and after becoming best friends, they lived happily ever after.

Moral – What goes around comes around. As you sow, so shall you reap.