I see Fabio playing his ukulele in every possible opportunity. He plays his ukulele when he wakes up, before lunch, after lunch, all the weekend, before sleep, before an appointment. I knew he wanted to progress in some of his projects and I was about to tell him stop playing and start working, I paused.
I remembered the story of the grasshopper and the ant.
You know the story.
The ant works all summer, collecting food and building shelter for the winter. The grasshopper spends its days enjoying the beautiful weather and making music.
Then comes the winter. The grasshopper is cold outside and goes to the ant’s house for food and shelter. The ant says I have worked all winter whereas you enjoyed yourself. Sorry but you did that to yourself. He shuts the door to the face of the grasshopper.
I don’t like this story.
Why what grasshopper does is not viewed as work? Why that is “just fun” and the other one is work? Didn’t ant listen to grasshoppers’s music while he was working? Didn’t it give it joy? Maybe music was the unique contribution of the grasshopper to this world, to the community and carrying food and making shelter was the contribution of the ant. Why can’t they do that for each other? Why can’t they take care of each other?
Indeed that is how the ant world works. (watch the video below till the 3:34)
The ant community shares the roles which are workers, caretakers, gatherers, soldiers. And when there is a need to take over the role, they do it organically.
In this fable world what are the things that are needed to have peace and security and love for the community? Who loves doing what? The ant can be the gatherer and the grasshopper can be the caretaker. If only they talk and they share!
The work of the grasshopper is not even acknowledged.
Why do we tell this story to our children?
Please let’s keep this conversation going about how we can share the work and create beautiful stories of working and living together.
Yesterday I got together with my coaching community, well part of it: our first graduates from BeCoach Academy.
I was feeling a bit tired while I was going there. And I noticed a bit of stress in me around the need of being prepared. “Oh” I said. I breathed. I thought about the opportunity of learning how they are doing, connecting even deeper and set the intention to listen to them.
It was a beautiful evening. It was one of these nights where I felt nothing was hidden under the table or masked. Everybody was as they were, everybody listened. Everybody spoke from their hearts.
A lot of questions were asked and most of those questions were the questions I asked myself and reflected on this blog. How interesting and beautiful that was.
I love this togetherness.
I am grateful.