The Little Red Ant and the Great Big Crumb
Scott Bahlmann
Used for Mexico Storytime Adapted from the story by Shirley Climo
Once in a cornfield inMexico, there lived a little red ant. She looked just like her nine hundred and ninety-nine cousins, except that she was a bit smaller than all the others. Because her legs were shorter, she always fell behind and was the last in line. That’s when she spied something yellow under a leaf.
“Torta!” exclaimed the little red ant. “A wonderful crumb of cake”
She tried to push the crumb. “Ooooo!” she puffed.
She tried to pull it. “Ugh!” she panted.
She sighed and said, “I need someone strong to carry my crumb for me.”
Then she set off down the row of cornstalks to find someone strong to help her.
(You can see the ant has a little velcro spot on her back, which the crumb attaches to at the end.)
She had not gone very far when she spied someone.
“El Lagarto!” Exclaimed little red ant. “Buenos dias,” she said politely to the lizard, “I’m looking for someone strong to carry my big crumb of cake.”
“Too Cold, “grumbled the lizard. “I’m stiff as a stick until El Sol warms me up.”
“Then El Sol is stronger than you are,” said the ant. “I shall ask the sun to help me.”
She had not gone very far when she spied a cobweb stretched between two cornstalks. Shining through the web was the sun.
“Lucky me!” cried the ant. “There is El Sol – caught in a net!”
She scrambled up the stalk.
“Stop shaking my ladder!”
“La Arana!” exclaimed little red ant. “Perdon, excuse me. I am climbing to the sun to ask him to carry my crumb of cake. El Sol is very strong.”
“Foolish ant,” Scoffed the spider. “No one can climb so high. Anyhow El Gallo is stronger than El Sol, every morning he wakes up the sun.”
“Than I shall ask him to help me,” the ant declared. She backed down the stalk and hurried on her way.
Soon she came to the rooster.
“El Gallo!” exclaimed the little red ant. “Por favor...please don’t eat me!”
“Ant’s taste HORRIBLE!” squawked El Gallo.
“Then will you carry my crumb of cake for me?”
The rooster cocked his head. “Did you say cake? Cake tastes DELICIOUS! I shall eat your crumb myself!”
“But...” the ant began.
“Awk!” the rooster screeched suddenly. “Listen! It’s the chicken-chaser! Awk!”
Flapping his wings, the rooster flew up and over the cornstalks.
The ant was glad to see El Gallo go before he found her great big crumb, and coming down the corn rows was...
“El Coyote!” exclaimed the little red ant. “You must be strong to sing so loudly, will you carry my big crumb of cake for me?”
El coyote stopped in the middle of a howl and stared down at the ant. “Don’t bother me. I’m singing the sun a bedtime song.” Suddenly the coyote pricked up his ears.
“Mira!” he yelped. “Look! It is the terrible Hombre!” He tucked his tail between his legs and dashed off through the cornstalks.
“El Hombre” exclaimed the little red ant. From far away the man looked too small to help even an ant, but the nearer he came the larger he got.
“Senor!” called the ant, “Please carry my cake for me!”
But the man did not hear and kept on walking. So...
The little red ant took a skip and a hop and caught hold of his shoelace. Then she ran up his leg.
“Yi!” yelled the man. “Ticklebugs!” he shook the ant out of his trousers and ran across the cornfield still shouting, “TICKLEBUGS!”
Ant watched him go, then she thought of something quite surprising.
“I frightened El Hombre...who scares El Coyote...who chases El Gallo...who wakes El Sol...who warms El Lagarto...So I, La Hormiga, am the strongest of all!”
The little red ant followed her trail back through the cornstalks. At last she reached her crumb of cake. The cake was warm and sticky and smelled sweeter than ever. She took a big, big breath. Then, ever so slowly, she lifted the crumb. She lifted it up and up until she could put it on her back...then step by step, inch by inch, all by herself the ant carried her wonderful cake home to the anthill.
Pronunciation:
Torta - TOHRtah
El Lagarto – el lahGAHRtoh
Buenos Dias – BWAYnohss DEEahss
El Sol – el SOHL
La Arana – lah ahRAHnyah
Perdon - payrDOHN
El Gallo – el GAHyoh
Por Favor – POHR fahVOHR
El Coyote – el cohYOHtay
Mira - MEErah
El Hombre – el OHMbray
Senor - SAYnyohr
La Hormiga – lah ohrMEEgah