In a world, not so long ago, but quite different from the one we live in, there was a forest, so vast and deep that few were able to enter it and come out from the other side, and those who did manage this incredible feat were so changed by their experience that they never were the same again. This forest’s name was Wisdom’s Fountain. Legend had it that the forest was enchanted and that whoever entered the forest would live to be a man of great wisdom.  As a result, billions of people came every year from all around the world to visit Wisdom’s Fountain, to glean what they could of the forest’s great wisdom. Few who entered the forest came out unscathed. Of those few, only a select amount of people were brave enough to recount their adventures in the forest. For centuries to follow, people made up increasingly absurd tales about what is lying between the depths of the mysterious Wisdom’s Fountain, many of which included furies, hags, ghosts, and other supernatural creatures. Only one supposition, though, was correct. In this mystifying forest, there lived a man, who was old beyond centuries, he lived among the creatures of the forest, for he understood them, and they him. Every single human who penetrated the forest’s peace or disturbed so much as a branch from its place met this man, for they did not look for him, in fact, he was the one who always found them. This man, whose name was Alemordestorl, told every man who entered the forest a story; unlike other stories, these stories were not figments of Alemordestorl’s imagination, but rather an account of the forest’s animals’ adventures and lives. These stories taught people invaluable lessons and important values. Among the most famous of these stories was one heard by Frederick Davidson, the spoiled son of a rich merchant, who was forced to go on this journey by his father, the latter secretly hoped beyond hope that the forest would teach his son a lesson to assuage his pompousness. After his journey through the forest, Frederick lived a long life as a very humble and wise man. All his relations were so befuddled by this transformation, they convinced themselves that an imposter was pretending to be Frederick Davidson! This story that inspired this amazing change in Frederick was the story of The Lion and The Ant.

              The lion was the king of the forest and was very proud to be so. He had a golden, matted mane, deep brown eyes, and was of a considerable size. He basked every day in his ‘immense glory’, for he was every bit as proud and spiteful as Frederick, to whom the story was told. The lion lived in his den, which was massive in every aspect that the home of even the largest creature in the forest appeared diminutive compared to it! In this gigantic den, there lived, unknown to its occupant, a colony of ants. The ants lived in a dark corner of the den and never left their home except to scavenge for food. While the lion’s ignorance of the ant colony was understood, the latter were far from ignorant of the lion. Every ant in the colony lived paralyzed in fear that the lion might, one day, step on their colony in passing. Every ant, that is, except the smallest ant; she was so miniscule that they came to call her ‘Minuta’ (my-NEW-tah). Ever since her birth, Minuta was regarded as ‘abnormal’, for two main reasons; firstly, she was so knowledgeable that she could speak the tongue of every animal in the forest with extraordinary fluency; secondly and more importantly, she never feared the lion. When asked about her reasons for her fearlessness, Minuta simply stated her philosophy, “One only fears the unknown and eccentric, what one can’t understand. The lion eats, sleeps, and drinks, just like us. We are cowards if we give ourselves reasons to believe elsewise and thus, fear the lion.” The rest of the ants scoffed at Minuta’s words and shunned her away. They did not know how one day, she would do what the biggest ant in the colony would never have dreamed of doing.

One night, after the lion was asleep, Minuta crept out of the colony for a hint of freedom and fresh air. She was tired of being scoffed at and humored. She shook her head in exasperation; she knew more than all of them, yet, she got about as much respect as the meanest speck of dirt on the floor. Suddenly, she heard a desperate cawing outside the flap of zebra skin, which served as a door for the den. Minuta crossed the floor of the den and, with the air of one going to answer the door, crept under the flap of skin and looked about in disbelief. The ground was littered with animal bones and directly in front of the den door, there lay a very haggard- looking crow. Minuta helped the crow to its feat and asked, with the latter’s tongue, “What brings you here, at this time of night?” The crow answered, “I heard tale of two hunters coming tomorrow at dawn. They mean to kill the lion while he is still asleep and take his skin! I came to give the lion a warning before hand, lest he falls into a deep sleep, from which he shall never awaken!” Minuta listened in great revelation, then she finally spoke, “Thank you for coming all this way to warn the lion. I shall try to protect him with all that is within my power.” The bedraggled crow looked at the ant with a mixture of pity and amusement, an ant protecting a lion! The crow answered, with a tone that is usually associated with visiting the gravely ill, “I am proud to be of any help. Try not to be too reckless, my friend. Luck be with you.” With a great sweep of his wings, the crow flew away as Minuta turned around and returned to the ant colony. I will give them one last chance to realize what is right, she thought, and with one great shout, she woke up the whole of the ant colony, which consisted of barely one hundred ants. Minuta told any ant who would listen what the crow told her and asked them to help her save the lion.  The news spread through the colony until every ant knew what happened. The ants started packing their supplies and filing out of their home. Minuta blocked the way out of the colony with her small form and raised her voice, “What do you believe is right to do? Had it been a member of your families who was about to die, would you have been so keen to run away? Most of the ants sneered at her words, only a few shifted their positions nervously. None made any attempt to return to the colony. A particularly valiant ant approached Minuta and made to escort her out of the colony. Minuta fixed him with a dagger-like gaze and said, “I am no damsel in distress, Dexter, and I never will be. This was my last straw. If you want to stay and help me, stay. If not, leave; either way, I am staying.” Within one minute, the colony was clear of all but one ant, Minuta. She sat down on a rock and started formulating her plan.

              The next day, an hour before dawn, two hunters entered the forest. They went only a little way into the forest, when a tree fell directly in their way. As a result of the lingering darkness, one of the men tripped over the tree and broke his neck. His companion, who was very selfish, left the dead man and continued his way, thinking, now that I have no one to share the skin with, I shall have the lion skin all to myself! The hunter lumbered on tirelessly, until he came to a vast clearing where he spotted the lion’s den in the faint light of dawn. The man grinned to himself and took out his knife as he saw the sleeping form of the lion. He circled the lion appraisingly, calculating how much money the skin could sell for. Suddenly, two huge eagles flew out of the sky, in his surprise, the man dropped his knife, which instead of sinking into the lion’s stomach, rolled away out of its own accord. Before the hunter could comprehend what had happened, the two eagles seized him from under the armpits and deposited him in the center of the forest, where no animal lived. There, it is said that he perished from lack of food and water, for no one ever heard of him again.

              A few hours later, the lion woke up and stretched his huge body. Then, he noticed a little black speck on the floor, apparently holding a big shiny thing. The little black speck was Minuta. She climbed the lion’s leg and stood on the tip of his golden mane and said confidently, “Hello Lion, my name is Minuta, I have lived with the rest of the ant colony in the far corner of your den for several years. What you don’t know, is that you wouldn’t be here right now if not for my quick thinking.” The last sentence aroused the lion’s curiosity, he contemplated Minuta for some time before he asked in a deep voice, “What do you claim to have done that affected me so, Minuta?” “Two hunters were meaning to kill you a few hours hence. I spoke to the woodpeckers and asked them to help an already quite rotten tree fall a little earlier than it would have on its own. Thus, tripping one of the men, who broke his neck. I also asked two eagles to follow the other man until he came to this den. Furthermore, it was I who caught the knife which fell from the hunter and was inches away from your chest. Then, they caught him unawares, as he was trying to understand how his knife managed to sprout legs and move, seemingly, by itself, and flew him to an isolated clearing where he shall perish.” “What proof do you have, ant, that this bizarre story you tell me of is true?” asked the lion with a hint of amusement in his voice. “I have the knife which was meant to kill you, and you know as well as I do, that there is no device of this kind anywhere in the forest.” The lion gazed in wonder at the short knife which the ant laid on his paw, then he spoke, his voice thick with emotion,” I now realize how close I have come to death. Forgive me, Minuta. I am forever in your debt.” The lion bowed his great head to the little ant, and Minuta did likewise. “I have just one question to ask you, Minuta. Why have you done all this for me, when none of your kind ever dared to approach me?” “I would have done the same for any other animal in the forest. Despite your immense size, you are not at all different from them, Lion.” These words, Minuta uttered with ferocious determination, as if daring the lion to contradict her. For one fleeting moment, the lion’s haughty gaze returned to his handsome features, then he smiled and replied, “I understand, my friend. For the first in my life, I understand.”  

– Ayah Gouda

October 5, 2018