The Three Ants

Three ants met on the nose of a man who was asleep in the sun. And

after they had saluted one another, each according to the custom

of his tribe, they stood there conversing.

The first ant said, "These hills and plains are the most barren I

have known. I have searched all day for a grain of some sort, and

there is none to be found."

Said the second ant, "I too have found nothing, though I have

visited every nook and glade. This is, I believe, what my people

call the soft, moving land where nothing grows."

Then the third ant raised his head and said, "My friends, we are

standing now on the nose of the Supreme Ant, the mighty and infinite

Ant, whose body is so great that we cannot see it, whose shadow

is so vast that we cannot trace it, whose voice is so loud that we

cannot hear it; and He is omnipresent."

When the third ant spoke thus the other ants looked at each other

and laughed.

At that moment the man moved and in his sleep raised his hand and

scratched his nose, and the three ants were crushed.