aesop's fables

"❁the swallow and the little birds

a farmer planting flax was being observed by a swallow. she and her tribe had traveled a long way, and she was very clever. 

she knew many things, one of which was that when the flax grew up, nets and snares would be made to trap her and the other birds of the countryside. so she ate each seed as the farmer dropped them onto the soil, before they had time to spring from the ground. 

however, there was much better food than flax seeds around in this particular season, and her tribe to flied about and sung and nibbled away at the wondrous supply of berries and fruits, and paid no attention to her hard work. 

it was becoming harder and harder for the swallow to eat the seeds, and soon enough the flax blades appeared above the ground. she became anxious. "it's not too late yet," she told the little birds. "pull it all up, blade by blade, and you will escape the tragic fate that awaits after the flax blooms. you cannot, like me, fly to other countries when danger threatens you here." the little birds still took no notice of the swallow, except to consider her a very troublesome bird. 

in the course of time the flax grew, ripened, and was gathered, spun, and made up into nets, as the swallow had predicted. many of the little birds were captured and cooked into pies or kept in cages. 

but the swallow has since preferred the society of men, even though she was in a cage, to that of her former companions.  

destroy the seed of evil before it grows tall. if you let it grow, it will come to your own ruin.