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Silky lived on a mulberry tree. When she was a little
worm, she already knew how to push people around. Her
tears moved and controlled her mother; her scream, her
father. Any worm that got in her way was pushed aside
like a speck of dust. She pushed others away to enjoy
more space. But she never pushed away food. She pushed
it down her throat. Silky lived to eat. Every day, she gobbled up all kinds
of leaves. In no time, she grew in length. Her weight
discouraged her from moving around actively, so the
worms that traveled up and down the trunk received less
pushing from her.
Being a member of the worm community, Silky was expected
to work like all others. But she could not move one
meter without puffing for air or without risking a fall.
Knowing her difficulty, the other worms did her share of
work. Silky was delighted with the advantage she had
because of her obesity. She would not lift a finger to
help in even the lightest work.
Not having to work helped Silky to gain even more
weight. "If only I were born a termite queen, life would
just be a long vacation of feasting," she thought.
One day, all the other worms decided to migrate to a
more leafy tree a few kilometers away. They marched past
Silky and bade her farewell. She was alarmed and said,
"Don't leave me behind. Take me along".
"You're welcome to come with us. But we aren't going to
carry you there as if you are a baby," the others
replied.
Silky could not go with them. She tried and found that
she needed a rest at every step. She was also afraid
that she might lose her grip and plunge down to her
death. So, Silky was left on the tree all by herself. |
