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, on little water beetle felt an irresistible urge to
climb up that stem. However, he was determined that he would
not leave forever. He would comeback and tell his
friends what he had found at the top.
When he reached the top and climbed out of the water on to
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
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!