Davey Andrew Chavez

The Dragonfly Story

Down below the surface of a quiet pond lived a little colony of water bugs.
They were a happy colony, living far away from the sun. For many months they
were very busy, scurrying over the soft mud on the bottom of the pond. They
did notice that every once in awhile one of their colony seemed to lose
interest in going about. Clinging to the stem of a pond lily it gradually
moved out of sight and was seen no more.
"Look!" said one of the water bugs to another. "one of our colony is
climbing up the lily stalk. Where do you think she is going?" Up, up, up it
slowly went....Even as they watched, the water bug disappeared from sight.
Its friends waited and waited but it didn't return...
"That's funny!" said one water bug to another. "Wasn't she happy here?"
asked a second... "Where do you suppose she went?" wondered a third.
No one had an answer. They were greatly puzzled. Finally one of the water
bugs, a leader in the colony, gathered its friends together. "I have an
idea". "The next one of us who climbs up the lily stalk must promise to come
back and tell us where he or she went and why."
"We promise", they said solemnly.
One spring day, not long after, the very water bug who had suggested the
plan found himself climbing up the lily stalk. Up, up, up, he went. Before
he knew what was happening, he had broke through the surface of the water
and fallen onto the broad, green lily pad above.
When he awoke, he looked about with surprise. He couldn't believe what he
saw. A startling change had come to his old body. His movement revealed four
silver wings and a long tail. Even as he struggled, he felt an impulse to
move his wings...The warmth of the sun soon dried the moisture from the new
body. He moved his wings again and suddenly found himself up above the
water. He had become a dragonfly!!
Swooping and dipping in great curves, he flew through the air. He felt
exhilarated in the new atmosphere. By and by the new dragonfly lighted
happily on a lily pad to rest. Then it was that he chanced to look below to
the bottom of the pond. Why, he was right above his old friends, the water
bugs! There they were scurrying around, just as he had been doing some time
before.
The dragonfly remembered the promise: "the next one of us who climbs up the
lily stalk will come back and tell where he or she went and why." Without
thinking, the dragonfly darted down. Suddenly he hit the surface of the
water and bounced away. Now that he was a dragonfly, he could no longer go
into the water...
"I can't return!" he said in dismay. "At least, I tried. But I can't keep my
promise. Even if I could go back, not one of the water bugs would know me in
my new body. I guess I'll just have to wait until they become dragonflies
too. Then they'll understand what has happened to me, and where I went."
And the dragonfly winged off happily into its wonderful new world of sun and
air.......
Thank you God, for the story of the water bugs and the dragonflies.
Please remember Davey who left the pond we live in...and remember me...

Love Mom