A nightingale lived on a tree in a garden. She sang beautifully, but she was extremely lazy. She had laid her eggs in a crow’s nest, because she was too lazy to build her own.
“Too much work, my dear,” she said to the crow, “I am such a great artist! I need to practise.”
The crow looked after her eggs and later the little fledglings, feeding them and teaching them how to fly nicely.
At the base of the tree lived an ant. She watched the nightingale and the crow.
“Artist!” she sniffed, “Why do you do everything for her?” she asked the crow.
“Her poor little ones will die if they are not cared for,” replied the crow. “They will grow up and be exactly like her. You watch!” said the ant.
The nightingale went on singing as usual. She watched the ant working every day, fetching food after walking a long distance to the fields and the farm.
Then winter came. The crow looked after her nestlings and the nightingale’s too. She made sure they all had enough to eat.
The nightingale saw that the ant had a store of food laid by for the winter. She did not need to go hunting for food. Besides, everything was either frozen or covered with snow. There was nothing for the nightingale to eat. What was she to do? How would she survive the winter?
“I wish I had been as hard-working as the ant or as kind as the crow!” moaned the nightingale, “I was so proud of my voice, but it did not help anyone. I think I should use it for something good.”
So, the nightingale went to the farm and sang at the window. The farmer’s wife was so happy to hear her song that she scattered some seeds on the window-sill. The nightingale had learnt a lot that winter!
Moral: No matter how intelligent or talented you are, hard work is important.
