The story of an Ant

Give this one a try. From the poem delusions I came to this ending. For now.

This is a story of a boy, he is no extraordinary one or so he thought. He is just like you and me. Only difference is that he wanted to improve himself. Make himself successful and this boy had one quality in him he never gave up, come what may. Along the way he somehow found that writing was his passion. He could express himself best when he wrote. So let’s just have a glimpse into a day of our hero through a dialogue he once had somewhere.
“tell me what troubles you?”, a friend asked.
“see I hope you can understand me when I digress today”, Vivek said
“yaa it’s fine” the friend was perplexed, “no one can ever understand you any way”
“ let it be” Vivek said “you dont wanna listen. I don’t wanna talk about it”
“okay now i will shut up”
“no you won’t”
“try me”
“i don’t want to make this sound like a confession by talking non stop about myself. You know I can’t do that much. But stories I can write” Vivek said, “Here! Go on! Read it for yourself”
Just like any regular day the ant was doing its regular tasks like it was supposed to. Carrying a little piece of food on its back but unwillingly. Cause that’s what it is supposed to do. Just like all the others are doing. The ant too was following its companions who had gathered their fill and were on the way back home.
“Ant world is not like ours, how can it be?” the friend thought, but this next line got him hooked.
Things happen somewhat differently in the ant world. Every one is in a hurry. Running to do their bit and lay back at home in the colony. It was a safe and secure way of life. What else one can need than security? And why not I ask?
“oh so Vivek’s the ant” He thought again
They have responsibilities towards each other, maybe that towards their fellow ants or the queen or themselves. Maybe everyone wants to be a hero but their routine has made them in a way that they don’t ask questions anymore. I am kidding ants don’t think that much. Or do they? And they cant even speak so its easier for them.

But our little tiny fool/ hero decided to bring a little bigger chunk of food back. It thought if i take back a bigger chunk then its friends wont have to work this hard the following day; maybe the queen will be happy. So now it put down the smaller piece of food on the ground and an ant on its way picked it up and headed back to the colony.
The first step done right? It helped someone. It could pick a small piece again and go back. It thought it can’t back down at first level of comfort. It wanted to get out of this comfort zone in the first place.
It knew the way back and what could it lose by just tried a little harder. Only that it could die at worst, It’s going to happen anyway. No matter how heroic this little ant sounds being a hero wasn’t its dream but helping others was.
Remembering a bigger piece of food that was left on the food gathering place, which no ant dared to pick even with help. It went back to the ground where a few spilled chips lay.
“waste for us humans and food for them” the friend exclaimed
“are you bored?” Vivek said, “ there must be something wrong. It still needs work. And perfec...”
“let me finish this”
The ant didn’t know if it was a garden, a forest or a reserved government land or whatever else there is. How does it matter to an ant anyway? After all It was just an ant. Ants too have problems like us all.
Just the difference today was that it had decided now things will happen a new way. It wont lay back and let life take the best of it and use the best defence ants have �"‘I am just an ant after all’.
All it had was determination and a will to do something. Maybe it was crazy.
You tell me was it crazy? It was old and weak but that never stopped people who have achieved success.
So with the intention to actually doing for what it came here it picked up a piece of chip. Each time it put a step forward, its feet shook terribly. A little worse each time. Not because it was getting old and also not because the chip was heavier than it could have ever lifted.
The steps were difficult because to help others one has to take bigger steps. It didn’t lose hope as it had something big on its mind.
It was just at the end of the journey and its little feet felt as if it were drunk and just needed rest. He dropped the piece there for a few seconds and stopped to look here and there.
All ants appreciated the efforts of our hero and it lived happily ever after.

“ the ending was abrupt”
“I know” Vivek said “turn the page over”
It gained conscious, if they sleep our hero slept the best those few seconds.
So it picked the chip again and just after two steps it was crushed under the feet of a human.
Destiny? Fate? Bad luck? No one in the ant community ever got to know if the human did it deliberately or not. Maybe it was time for the hero anyway as it had only a day left to live. It lay there struggling to get back on its feet which were already tired with the journey and now they were broken too. It kept trembling with pain but still an urge to get up was there just so the food reaches inside the colony. It had left the food at the gates of the colony. It accepted peace with its failure and stopped trying anymore.
As mournful as it could get did and an ant surfaced on the gates and witnessed the whole scene. It pushed little pieces of sand inside the hole so as to alert the others that something has happened. Maybe it was a guard ant. Who knows how their world works let alone ours. A group of ants came out and just stood there. They just tried to calm everyone and let them mourn. Even ants mourn if they can not show or tell.
We humans can’t hear if they speak in the first place. Humans can’t listen everything. They cant understand the feelings of others, and that’s why people stop expressing grief and guilt.
Getting back to the ants who were waiting to leave.
Just then one of them saw the piece of chip which they had left at the food gathering place as they couldn’t bring it even with help. Now five of them took the chip into the hole. Our little hero having seen the sight sighed with relief and passed away in peace.”
He was so moved by the story, the friend had nothing more to say.
-Krishna Handa
English Hons Sec A
Writer’s Note- I hope too many ‘it’ and ‘its’ don’t spoil the motive of this story.
“Stay blessed, stay happy, you’re special.”