The Three Ants

Three ants met on the nose of a man who was asleep in the sun. Andafter they had saluted one another, each according to the customof his tribe, they stood there conversing.

The first ant said, "These hills and plains are the most barren Ihave known. I have searched all day for a grain of some sort, andthere is none to be found."

Said the second ant, "I too have found nothing, though I havevisited every nook and glade. This is, I believe, what my peoplecall the soft, moving land where nothing grows."

Then the third ant raised his head and said, "My friends, we arestanding now on the nose of the Supreme Ant, the mighty and infiniteAnt, whose body is so great that we cannot see it, whose shadowis so vast that we cannot trace it, whose voice is so loud that wecannot hear it; and He is omnipresent."

When the third ant spoke thus the other ants looked at each otherand laughed.

At that moment the man moved and in his sleep raised his hand andscratched his nose, and the three ants were crushed.