Ο μέρμηγκας κι ο τζίτζικας
Θέρους ἦν ἀκμὴ καὶ οἱ μὲν τέττιγες μουσικὴν ἀνεβάλλοντο σύντονον: τοῖς μύρμηξι δὲ πονεῖν ἐπῄει καὶ συλλέγειν καρπούς, ἐξ ὧν ἔμελλον τοῦ χειμῶνος τραφήσεσθαι. χειμῶνος δὲ ἐπιγεγονότος οἱ μύρμηκες μέν, οἷς ἐπόνουν, ἐτρέφοντο, τοῖς δὲ ἡ τέρψις ἐτελεύτα πρὸς ἔνδειαν.
Οὕτω νεότης πονεῖν οὐκ ἐθέλουσα παρὰ τὸ γῆρας κακοπραγεῖ.
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The ant and the dung beetle
During the summer, the ant went around the fields collecting grains of wheat and barley so that he could store up some food for the winter. A dung beetle watched the ant and decided that he must be a wretched creature since he worked all the time, never taking a moment's rest, unlike the other animals. The ant didn't pay attention to the dung beetle and simply went about his business. When winter came and the dung was washed away by the rain, the beetle grew hungry. He went to the ant and begged him to share a little bit of his food. The ant replied, 'O beetle, if you had done some work yourself instead of making fun of me while I was working so hard, then you would not need to be asking me for food.'
Transl.: Laura Gibbs (2002)