STORY: For A Favor, Ask Busy People by Peter Spangenberg

Story title: For A Favor, Ask Busy People 
By: Peter Spangenberg

    There was once a little flower standing alone in the desert. It was surrounded on all sides but sand and stones. The little flower dreamt daily of feeling some raindrops. She had been told how refreshing and important rain is. But none ever came. And so the little flower began to wilt. It was deathly afraid of the sizzling heat, of the loneliness, and of the howling wind.

Then a tiny hummingbird swooped down, noticed the little flower's unhappiness and went around asking the animals to help revive the flower.
    The big bull was not interested in anything as small as a flower. The big fat dog was too lazy to move a hand or foot. The noisy blackbird had to many things to do.
    The suddenly the hummingbird got the idea of asking the ants to come to the rescue. They did so, immediately. By holding hands, they built a long chain and passed along some dew which other ants had collected even in the desert. The ants personally carried the dewdrop water straight to the roots of the flower. In a short time the flower flourished as never before.
Its petals became a brilliant red. It became a very visible landmark for the whole area.
     One of the lessons from this story is: whenever you are in need of a big favor, always ask someone who is very busy as ants traditionally are.