The Dragonfly Once, in a little pond, in the muddy water under the lily pads,
there lived a little water beetle in a community of water beetles.
They lived a simple and comfortable life in the pond
with few disturbances and interruptions. Once in a while
sadness would come to the community when one of their fellow
beetles would climb the stem of a lily pad
and would never be seen again.
They knew when this happened; their friend was dead, gone forever.
Then, one day, one little water beetle felt an irresistible urge to climb up that stem.
However, he was determined that he would not leave forever.
He would come back and tell his friends what he had found at the top.
When he reached the top and climbed out of the water onto the surface of the lily pad,
he was so tired, and the sun felt so warm, that he decided he must take a nap.
As he slept, his body changed and when he woke up,
he had turned into a beautiful blue-tailed dragonfly
with broad wings and a slender body designed for flying.
So, fly he did!
And, as he soared he saw the beauty of a whole new world and a far superior way
of life to what he had never known existed. Then he remembered his
beetle friends and how they were thinking by now he was dead.
He wanted to go back to tell them, and explain to them that he was now
more alive than he had ever been before. His life had been fulfilled
rather than ended. But, his new body would not go down into the
water. He could not get back to tell his friends the good news.
Then he understood that their time would come, when they, too,
would know what he now knew. So, he raised his wings and flew
off into his joyous new life!
