Steven was scurrying along the long dirt road without a care in the world when he heard a sound that sent terror into his soul. There was a sudden and loud chirp coming from the sky above, and he knew there must be a dove near. All ants fear doves because usually they become the dinner meal for doves. When Steven heard that chirp, he instantly searched for the source of the noise that terrified him at that moment. Very quickly he saw the dove, and he could tell it was monstrous in size because of the huge shadow it produced over him.
Steven felt extremely exposed out in the open, and he knew he was not safe because the dove could easily target him. He darted for cover under a nearby bunch of leaves. Since he was so frantic and worried for his safety, he began to stumble and his run got really off track. His run turned into more of a disoriented scramble, and before he knew, it he was falling straight into a brook filled with raging water. As Steven was trying to escape one horrifying danger, he accidentally got himself plunged right into an even worse predicament.
Just when Steven thought he couldn’t fight to stay alive in the water any longer, he saw the dove progressing towards him. The dove dropped a blade of the straw near the ant, and he was actually trying to help save Steven’s life. Even though Steven was skeptical of this unexpected kindness, he was in no place to deny help. He was brought to safety and he was eternally grateful to the dove.
Just as he was about to thank the dove and introduce himself, the day became even more dangerous. A dark shadow came over them and as he looked up, he saw a man with a stone hoping to kill the dove. Steven knew he couldn’t let his rescuer die, so he did the only think he could. He ran straight for the man's foot and stung his heel. The pain in his heel threw off his aim making him miss the dove by an inch. This gave the dove just enough time to escape to a nearby tree. It was clear he was very grateful for the ant's help.
They nodded and parted ways. No words needed to be said because they knew they had started a beautiful friendship, but after all the ant was supposed to be lunch for the dove. The ant and the dove never spoke of this day to anyone. They experienced a new kind of kindness that day that would stick with them for the rest of their lives.
Author's Note: The story is a very simple tale of kindness between an ant and a dove. I wrote this story because I really enjoy the thought of how two animals who are bred to hate each other can ignore their difference and help each other in a time of need. I think it is something that a lot of people can relate to because even though you might not like someone it is your job to help that person out. You would want to be helped out if you were in their position. People in today’s society need to be more focused on kindness in general, instead of always just thinking about what they want and their individual happiness. I believe that this story really encompasses that lesson. This story could be a teaching moment for others. They both helped each other out, and the kindness was reciprocated. For my story I gave the characters a little background and personality about their struggles. By doing this is helped my readers better understand the actions of my characters. It gave the readers an opportunity to relate to either the dove or the ant. The purpose of the story is to influence the readers to react the next time that they see a person in need.
Bibliography: This story is based on a story from the Aesop (Winter) Unit "The Ant and the Dove" in The Aesop for Children, with illustrations by Milo Winter (1919).
Steven felt extremely exposed out in the open, and he knew he was not safe because the dove could easily target him. He darted for cover under a nearby bunch of leaves. Since he was so frantic and worried for his safety, he began to stumble and his run got really off track. His run turned into more of a disoriented scramble, and before he knew, it he was falling straight into a brook filled with raging water. As Steven was trying to escape one horrifying danger, he accidentally got himself plunged right into an even worse predicament.
Just when Steven thought he couldn’t fight to stay alive in the water any longer, he saw the dove progressing towards him. The dove dropped a blade of the straw near the ant, and he was actually trying to help save Steven’s life. Even though Steven was skeptical of this unexpected kindness, he was in no place to deny help. He was brought to safety and he was eternally grateful to the dove.
Just as he was about to thank the dove and introduce himself, the day became even more dangerous. A dark shadow came over them and as he looked up, he saw a man with a stone hoping to kill the dove. Steven knew he couldn’t let his rescuer die, so he did the only think he could. He ran straight for the man's foot and stung his heel. The pain in his heel threw off his aim making him miss the dove by an inch. This gave the dove just enough time to escape to a nearby tree. It was clear he was very grateful for the ant's help.
They nodded and parted ways. No words needed to be said because they knew they had started a beautiful friendship, but after all the ant was supposed to be lunch for the dove. The ant and the dove never spoke of this day to anyone. They experienced a new kind of kindness that day that would stick with them for the rest of their lives.
Bibliography: This story is based on a story from the Aesop (Winter) Unit "The Ant and the Dove" in The Aesop for Children, with illustrations by Milo Winter (1919).
Kristine I love the fact that you kept your story short, sweet and simple. It was a nice short read that had a good heart warming message with it! This story reminds of relationships between many animals. For example, a cat and a dog are supposed to hate each other, but sometimes they end up being the best of friends. It just goes to show that friendships can happen many different ways. I'm looking forward to reading more of your stories in the future!
ReplyDeleteI read this story the other week and I thought it would be cool if someone did a story on it. You definitely did a good job making a spin off of the original! I like the ants name because that is also my name. Good job with the spelling of it too haha. I liked how your story showed kindness eliminating fear. I feel like so much of people in our world, including myself, can be crippled with fear at times and it can really hinder us. I like how you split up the paragraphs as well because it made for an easy read and if I lost my place it was easy to get back to it. The picture was placed well in the story because it was right about then when the visual really helped me picture in my mind what was going on. One thing you might want to think about is putting the link to the story that inspired you in the author's note, I think our professor told us to put it there. Great job overall though! I look forward to reading more of your stories in the future.
ReplyDeleteThis was a wonderful read. I really enjoyed how you stuck to the main plots of the original story while also adding in some more background details and thoughts and feelings shared between the two animals. I couldn't agree more with you that this story's lesson is one all people can benefit from as well. One thing I wish you would have added is some actual dialogue between the two animals. I know you said no words were needed, but at the same time dialogue really helps personalities shine through.
ReplyDeleteYou did a really great job of breaking up your paragraphs, each separation made sense because the topics of the paragraphs changed between the breaks, which is the point. I also think the image you used was the perfect one to demonstrate what went on it the story. I'm a visual person so I appreciate when people chose pictures that help my mind see what your story is describing.
This was a great story Kristine! I like the simplicity of it because the message can clearly be understood. A lot of the stories I have wrote have a lesson in them as well, so I really like that yours did too. I could defiantly see this being a children’s book or short story one day. I also thought that the ant stinging the person on the heel was an interesting spot, it reminded me of the Achilles’ heel story for some reason.
ReplyDeleteThe picture for your story was so perfect! I have had a lot of trouble finding a good picture that describes my story well, and this one could not be more perfect for your story. I have read a lot of stories in this class about animals that are natural enemies but end up helping each other out. I like that you kept with this theme, because it shows that even the most typical enemies can still be nice and friendly.