The Little Ladybug

The Little Ladybug

A little ladybug once lived atop a hill near an old farm yard. Her life was swell at the farm, filled with friends and plenty of food. She lived in a beautiful house of tiny sticks and leaves with her parents. Her house was the town's talk; all the insects and animals would come by and visit. The house was the spot to enjoy a nice cup of tea or even a warm pie. Even the pigs and sheep would come and spend time with everyone despite their size and inability to enter the house. The old wise spider of the farm even stopped by a couple of times. The old wise spider lived at the tippy top of the barn; it was quite the journey to get to his house, yet it was worth it. The spider would advise and help everyone on the farm. Despite the spider's knowledge and kindness, the ladybug never sought the spider; she was humble. However, one day, the ladybug needed the spider's help.

A terrible storm had passed through the farm, completely tearing the ladybug's house apart. Her magnificent house was ripped to shreds by the storm. The fragile sticks and bright green leaves that had once been holding the house together were long gone. The storm had damaged one of her wings so she couldn't fly anymore. To top it all off, her parents had flown away in fear of the storm. She was left with nothing; it was finally her time to seek the old wise spider. She began to leave her sorrowful state and went to the spider. She crawled and crawled her way up the barn. Being unable to fly was extremely tough, yet she could pull it off. She had finally made it up to the top after an exhausting trip. The spider welcomed her into his little den. 

"Oh, Mr. Spider, I need your help! My house, my parents, and even my ability to fly are completely gone! How am I going to host everyone for tea and pie anymore?" asked the ladybug in a worried tone. The poor ladybug was only thinking about others and how she couldn't bring joy to everyone else anymore. 

"Now, now, Ms. Ladybug, everything will be okay. You need to worry about yourself in this situation. Focus on building a new house! But remember, just because everyone seems like they are your friends doesn't mean they always are. Now that you don't have a house, there's a chance people might treat you differently. Be safe now, Ms. Ladybug." The ladybug pondered over the spider's words, realizing that true friends are those who stand by you even in the most challenging times.

The ladybug took the spider's advice to heart, motivating her to go and build a new house. She skipped down the barn, her excitement overshadowing the toughness of the trip. When she reached the bottom, she began brainstorming. The ladybug spotted a beautiful oak tree next to the barn door and decided that was where she would build her house. She could already imagine the brightly colored leaves and hard sticks holding her home together. She was excited about the tea parties in her new house and got to work.

She went down the steep hill to where she could find all her materials. She decided to visit a few people on her way to see if they would help. Her first stop was the grasshopper's house. The ladybug knocked on the grasshopper's door with a great smile. 

"Oh, hello, Ms. Ladybug! What are you doing here?" asked the grasshopper as he opened the door.

"Well, as you know, the recent storm wiped out my house, so I am trying to build a new one! Would you care to help me gather materials? Think of all the tea and pie parties!" said the ladybug.

"Ms. Ladybug, I would love to, but uhm," the grasshopper paused for a moment. " Uh, I have to work on my house too! I am busy today. Maybe I can help you next time!" 

"Oh, okay, no worries!" said the ladybug as she walked away.

She shrugged off the encounter with the grasshopper and made her way to the butterfly's house. The butterfly lived on top of a tree stump, so she had to make a tiny trip. The lack of flying made it harder for the ladybug, yet she pushed through. She had finally reached the top of the stump to greet the butterfly.

"Ms. Ladybug? What brings you here?" asked the butterfly.

"Well, I just tried to get Mr. Grasshopper's help building my house, but he said he was busy today. Would you mind helping me out instead?" asked the ladybug in a less excited tone.

The butterfly thought for a moment and finally said, "You know what? I don't think I can today. I am, uhm, going to Mr. Beetle's house! Maybe I will help next time, Ms. Ladybug!"

"Oh, alright – no worries," said the ladybug in an exhausted tone. The ladybug descended the tree stump and considered going to Mr. Beetle as a last resort. She thought to herself that maybe he would help her before Ms. Butterfly went over to his house. Mr. Beetle was always known to help others, so she thought he would help. She entered the beetle's tiny cave underground and greeted him.

"Hello, Ms. Ladybug! What brings you here?" said the beetle. 

"Well, I needed some help building my new house. My wings were damaged during the big storm, and it was hard for me to crawl up and down this hill. Would you care to help?" asked the ladybug.

"I'm so sorry, Ms. Ladybug, but I'm extremely busy today! I have to make a long trip to the spider's den! I can help you next time!

"Yeah, next time would be nice," said the ladybug, walking away with even less hope. She realized that she was being lied to. The butterfly was not going to the beetle's house if he was going to the old wise spider. She then realized the beetle could have lied to her and was devastated. 

Why is no one helping me? she thought to herself. I used to offer everyone a place to hang out, but now that it is gone, no one wants to help me!

She began to think of the conversation she had with the spider earlier. She realized that the spider was right. No one wanted to help her despite everything she did to help everyone else. She realized no one wanted to be her friend anymore, as she no longer had anything to offer. This realization almost motivated her in a strange sense. She wanted to build a perfect house to enjoy all by herself. She picked herself up from her saddened state and continued her journey.

The ladybug worked day and night to build this house. She traveled the steep hill many times to gather the necessary materials. It was hard alone, as she could only carry one stick or leaf at a time, but she was motivated. She saw her dream house coming together stick by stick and leaf by leaf. The brightness of the leaves was a perfect contrast to the dark brown color of the sticks. It was beautiful. After many hours of work, she had finally finished the house. 

Sure enough, the day after she finished the house, it became the talk of the town once again. Everyone, including the grasshopper, butterfly, and beetle, was ecstatic to spend time at her new house to enjoy a nice cup of tea and pie. The smell of the freshly baked pie filled the town's air, and the steam from the hot tea crowded the skies. The animals all gathered around the ladybug's house with massive grins on their faces. The impatient butterfly flew to the door to knock with everyone else behind her. The ladybug cracked the door open and noticed everyone. She knew what they were all here for. 

"Can we come in to enjoy some pie and tea?" asked the butterfly in a bright tone.

"Maybe next time," said the ladybug as she shut the door with a big smile.