Lucy halted in awe before the king of the animals. His presence was imposing and majestic. Nevertheless, she decided to make a request… How could an ant win the good graces of the lion?
One day, little Lucy took a walk through her home territory to visit the different fortresses existing in it. Enchanted, she entered each of those marvellous constructions to better contemplate the immense work of her ancestors. Lucy was proud to belong to a dynasty of ants living in that region for many years.
She was nearing the end of her journey, when she suddenly heard:
“Silence, please!”
Curious to know what was happening, she entered a large chamber to find a crowd of little ants, having a class with the master ant.
“Today we will learn about the lion king!” continued the teacher. “He is the supreme animal. We must regard him with fear and respect, honour him and venerate him. But, at the same time, we must be very careful with him, because, if we upset him in the slightest way, we will be putting our lives at risk. With his strength, a single gesture from him would be enough do away with us ants, leaving no remains to even tell the tale.”
Lucy went on her way thoughtfully, wondering what this “supreme animal” must be like…
“With his strength, a single gesture from him would be enough do away with us ants!”
A few weeks later, she went for a stroll in the forest. She walked along, cheerful and spritely, thinking about what might be the best food to gather that day. Soon, her beady eyes were drawn to something she had never seen before: a cherry tree! Those shiny, red fruits looked like something from Heaven. She was wonderstruck!
As she headed eagerly toward the tree, Lucy suddenly felt the earth tremble. Then there came such a loud roar that she imagined it must certainly be announcing the end of the world:
“Roaaarrr!”
“What can that be?” asked the little ant, in alarm.
Coming to a halt, she soon saw who had made that sound: it was none other than the lion! His fur was golden and shiny, and a huge mane wreathed his head. His long tail swayed menacingly… But what scared our little ant the most was the size of his paws! He would be able to destroy the strongest ant fortress with just one touch!
There was no denying, however, how imposing and majestic his presence was. As the king of the animals stood atop an elevation, the sun made the perfect backdrop behind him, casting its final rays of the day and tinting the sky with lovely colours.
Despite her fear, Lucy could not contain an exclamation! The words of the master ant still echoed in her ears: “The lion is not to be played with! Never dare to approach him, let alone speak to him, if you want to live.” But Lucy was bold …
In a mixture of fear and admiration, she drew close to the lion, for she wanted to make a request. She would ask him to pick a cherry for her, from that tree, far too tall for her to climb. Would the king of the animals be willing?
If coming near him was already taking a great risk, surely it was madness to ask him for this favour. But our little ant felt so drawn by his greatness and majesty that she forgot all the lessons of prudence that she had been taught from the cradle!
Despite her fear, Lucy was filled with admiration for the king of the animals
Without stopping to think, she walked right up to the lion and greeted him, but… the king of the animals ignored her completely. Then, looking steadily at him, she addressed him with determination.
“O king of animals, don’t you even notice me, your little sister, so industrious, so productive, so steadfast in her labour? Why do you treat me with such disdain?”
The lion, restraining himself, replied:
“Oh, lowly ant, if only you knew the vast horizons I see! If only you were aware of the expanses that my sights were made to encompass! And now you come before me, wanting me to turn my attention away from such superior realms to look upon such a tiny and trifling creature as yourself?”
Cleverly, the ant replied:
“O lion, how I am honoured to be in your shadow, or, rather, to be protected by the light of your strength. God created you to represent majesty in the attack and majesty in defence! And you cannot imagine how much admiration you inspire in us. We frail little ants venerate you, O lion!”
At that, he exclaimed:
“My goodness!!! I never thought that such an insignificant insect could entertain such a sublime line of thought!”
But Lucy was not finished yet. Taking a deep breath, she continued:
“I am so small and powerless that I need to make an enormous effort to get around. The distance you cover in one leap would be a long journey for me. Yet, I feel fortunate to contemplate your greatness. Can you not cast a downward glance at this poor insignificant insect, as you said a moment ago, and deign to help your little sister?”
“What is it that you want, little ant?”
“O venerable king, in my travels, I have come across many different fruits. However, none of them compares to the one I saw today: the cherry. How I wish I could have a fruit from yonder cherry tree, yet I am too small to pluck one for myself. Would you be so kind as to pick a cherry for me? Just one, and I would be forever grateful to know that in your might, you were capable of helping the least of all animals.”
“Is that all you want, little ant?” replied the lion, with kind and majestic nod of his head.
Seeing the humility of that tiny creature, the lion was inclined to kindly hear its request
He strolled over to the cherry tree, selected a beautiful branch, laden with fruit, and broke it off with his mighty paws. Then, knowing it would be impossible for Lucy to carry it, he took it himself to the ant “fortress,” which was nothing but an insignificant mound of earth to him.
Arriving there, he carefully deposited the cherry branch at the main entrance, and, in a knightly gesture, bowed to the ant. More than those delectable cherries, she had won the lion’s friendship, giving us humans a lesson on how to attain, with fear, admiration and humility, the benevolence of God. ◊
Illustrations: Giuliana d’Amaro
