1 The Ant and the Grasshopper On a warm summer day a grasshopper jumped from stem to stem nibbling a bit here and there as he practiced his jumps and leaps and spins He spotted an ant far below on the dusty ground lugging a kernel of corn The grasshopper jumped down and landed close to the ant Did you see that wonderful leap he asked No I missed it the ant said It’s easier to carry if I keep my head down and my back straight But why carry at all the grasshopper asked It looks like hot dusty business 6
I must help my sisters put away food for the winter the ant said as she hurried along At that the grasshopper laughed and laughed Winter was months and months away How silly to let the beautiful summer pass without leaping and hopping and playing Every day the grasshopper would see the ant carrying corn and seeds and bits of crust dropped by people It never looked like something the grasshopper would enjoy at all Instead he danced the days away nibbling grass whenever he wanted One day he was jumping and leaping in the crispy brown leaves when something white and wet fell right on his head Snow Winter is here the grasshopper gasped I must gather He hopped and leaped and spun but he could fi nd no green grass under the snow Finally the grasshopper crawled into a crack in a log shivering The ant was right he chattered Save in the good times to help in the bad 8
2 The Boy Who Cried Wolf On a grassy hill overlooking a village a boy sat on a rock next to his father’s fl ock of sheep The boy looked down on the village below He thought about how much more fun he would have if his chores were in the village instead of all alone in the sheep pasture I’m bored he complained The sheep looked at him a moment Then they returned to eating grass I’m very bored he complained even louder The sheep looked at him and then went back to their eating Being looked at by sheep was not that interesting The boy wanted the attention of people not sheep That gave him an idea He 9
