The Grasshopper and the Ants - Aesop and Lopez versions . . .

I posted my version of Aesop's The Grasshopper and the Ants. I originally posted my version 

some years ago at publishedauthors.org and on nicestories.com. 

THE GRASSHOPPER AND THE ANTS by Aesop (Project Gutenberg, new
translation, http://www.gutenberg.org) 

One fine day in winter some Ants were busy drying their store of corn,
which had got rather damp during a long spell of rain. Presently up 
came a Grasshopper and begged them to spare her a few grains, "For," 
she said, "I'm simply starving." The Ants stopped work for a moment, 
though this was against their principles. "May we ask," said they, 
"what you were doing with yourself all last summer? Why didn't you 
collect a store of food for the winter?" "The fact is," replied the 
Grasshopper, "I was so busy singing that I hadn't the time." "If you 
spent the summer singing," replied the Ants, "you can't do better than 
spend the winter dancing." And they chuckled and went on with their 
work. 

_________________________ 

21st Century Version of the Grasshopper and the Ants (by Victor D.
Lopez, fan of ants everywhere and every when) 

One fine day in winter some Ants were busy drying their store of corn,
which had got rather damp during a long spell of rain. Presently up 
came a Grasshopper and demanded that they give him a fair share of 
their stores. The Ants stopped work for a moment, though this was 
against their principles. "May we ask," said they, "what you were doing 
with yourself all last summer? Why didn't you collect a store of food 
for the winter?" "The fact is," replied the Grasshopper, "I was busy 
with more important things, like hugging trees, holding hands and 
singing Cumba Ya with like-minded people. Unfortunately, these 
activities are not not prized by the stupid elites that unfairly 
oppress the lower classes and try to exploit them by such means as 
having them do meaningless, underpaid work that is beneath their 
dignity." "If you spent the summer singing, holding hands and hugging 
trees" replied the Ants, "when you should have been planning for the 
winter and building up your stores to see you and your family through 
the winter, you can't do better than spend the winter dancing." And 
they chuckled and went on with their work. 

The grass hopper, who was a very sensitive sort, was deeply offended by
the selfishness and intransigence of these wealthy ants who were 
unwilling to provide their fair share to support the less fortunate 
members of the community, like himself. "You did not build the corn you 
reaped through your avariciousness over the summer while more 
enlightened people than you were hard at work exploring their sensual 
and artistic natures. You did not cause it to rain, or the sun to 
shine, or the bees to pollinate the nascent crops. You simply reaped 
the benefit of the bounty of nature that belongs to everyone and 
greedily attempted to keep for yourself a harvest provided not by your 
work but by the grace of mother earth. You are thieves, hoarders, and 
selfish beasts that would take for yourselves that which nature 
provides for all of her children in equal measure." He then stormed 
off, while the ants shook their heads, smiled and returned to their 
work. 

Later that day, the grasshopper returned with hoards of like-minder
people seething about the outrage and disrespect shown them by the 
selfish, cruel, heartless ants. They fell upon the ants beating them 
senseless, took the greater part of their harvest and burned what they 
could not take to teach these evil little ants a lesson, all the while 
chanting:"Yes we can," "power to the people," "no justice no peace" and 
a range of similarly catchy phrases as they beat the selfish ants, 
liberated their food stores and burned the rest. It was a great day for 
grasshoppers who danced into the night around the bonfires of their 
victory. 

That winter, the ants starved, as did the grasshoppers who had gorged
themselves upon the liberated stores of the selfish ants in a few days 
of round-the-clock partying and soon exhausted them, and could find no 
succor from the other free spirits in their village. As their last act, 
they gathered, held hands, hugged a tree and sang in unison their final 
song: "It is all the fault of the stupid ants who brought their 
destruction upon their heads and ours through their selfish 
unwillingness to share their hoarded bounty. Stupid, selfish, 
egotistical, greedy little ants. All their fault. All their fault. If 
only they had been as enlightened as we." 

_________________ 

Victor D. Lopez