Story from Aesop’s Fables/Panchatantra
A little ant once fell into a pond.A dove was perching in a tree over the water.The dove saw the ant fall.
She pulled off a leaf with her bill and let it drop into the water.
“There, little ant! get on that leaf, and you will be safe,” she said.
The ant jumped upon the leaf, and the wind blew it to the shore of the pond.Not long after this, a man laid a net to catch the dove.He pulled it in and found the dove caught fast in it.
The ant saw the man with the net, and ran up his leg and bit him.
“O!” said the man, “what is that?”
He let the net drop to the ground, and the dove flew away.Next time the dove saw the ant, she said:
“Good ant, you saved my life.”
“You saved my life once, and I only tried to pay you back,” said the ant.
A kindness is never wasted.