Tiny ant, large heart

My friend was looking upset.

“I saw an accident victim pleading for help, but I had to rush to office. I could not do anything,” he said.

“Was it a major accident?”

“It was a minor injury, a cut on the knees. There were people who were helping, but I should have helped,” he continued.

“It is OK. That good thought is enough,” I consoled him.

After he left, guilty conscience gripped me. After all, I have also skipped helping people on many such occasions.

Interestingly, I read an anecdote in a Tamil book about a research on ants by a nature lover, Belt. 

A group of ants was busy searching for food. Many of them carried foodstuff and were sliding along with weights on their heads. Suddenly, one lost balance and fell. Along with the ant fell a stone and partly crushed it. The ant’s attempts to wriggle out went in vain.

Other ants tried to help, but found it impossible. Some of the ants moved in different directions and fetched more comrades. Together they tried, but again in vain. They gave up the attempt, turned away from the tiny stone in a thoughtful mood. In seconds, they returned together and all at a time dashed against the tiny stone rolling it over. The ant was saved.