Something so small.....

The Miracle Ant

I usually try not to make this blog an account of my personal experiences, opting to stick to the stories I write as originally intended. However, there are times when things happen to you, that touch you in some way that you just have to tell whoever you can about it. This was the case with me 3 nights ago.

I was preparing dinner and had pulled out the pak choi (cabbage) that had been in the fridge for several days. Upon slicing it up, I discovered a dead colony of ants on my chopping board, having most obviously, died from the cold temperature in the fridge. It’s not uncommon in Fiji, to find ants everywhere and these ones had decided to take a tour around pak choi city. Unfortunately for them, pak choi city was harvested and duly ended up in my fridge where after several days in a much colder climate, they were struck down by hypothermia and died.

Except for one plucky, lucky little bugger! As I was about to place my chopping board under the tap, I spotted movement and then there he was. The miracle ant that had survived extreme conditions, watched his fellowmen die and yet refusing to pass on. What a brave little bugger.

I was so moved by the ant’s determination to live, trying futilely to drag itself off the wet chopping board that I intervened with mother nature and saved it. I slid it onto my finger nail, rested the little fella onto a dry tea towel and delivered crumbs of sweet bread to it. Then I waited to see another miracle unfold.

Within seconds, the ant recovered tremendously! At first, it was a little wobbly on its feet but the smell of sugar and warm air must have injected a new life force into it. It went from wobbly to stodgy, from unaware to exploratory and then, it found its feet. The strength in it was just so amazing that you’d never have believed that it had been stuck on a cabbage leaf in the fridge for 3 days, surviving while all its mates died. Just so amazing.

I then transferred it to the pot plant outside which regularly gets fed with potato peels, pawpaw skin and other yummy food. I sincerely hope that the miracle ant found its haven there because really, he was the pluckiest little bugger of all.