The Faithful Worm

I just love analogies. I heard this one on my mission and I wish I could remember the brother's name who told it as well as the exact way he did so. Here is the way I'll tell it:

In a beautiful, verdant, vibrant jungle there lived a tiny, ugly, and weak little worm. No one stops to admire such a little worm, especially not in a spectacular looking jungle. One night the little worm had a very special dream when he went to the summit of the tallest mountain in the jungle. The view was unforgettably beautiful and overwhelmingly inspiring. When he awoke he immediately and with diligent determination began a journey to the top of the mountain. So much so that he drew the attention of many of the animals in the jungle.

 A tiger observed him in silence one day until prompted by a great curiosity he asked “Listen here little worm-where are you going in such a…hurry?” 

“I am going to the top of the mountain” panted little worm enthusiastically. “There my dream will come true!” 

Tiger looked at him with a mix of contempt and concern and said “look here little worm, I wouldn’t try such a thing, and I am a lot bigger then you are. It’s best to forget what one dreams and live the reality you know.” 

“Hmm” pondered the worm, then he continued on his path. 

After a little while a hyena on a holiday trip from the savannah crossed his way. 

“Hey man! Who’s chasing you?” she chuckled. 

“No one is chasing me mister hyena, I am chasing my dream of seeing the view at the top of the mountain!” 

“What a plan! Oh ha-ha-how ridiculous!” she said between guffaws. 

The little worm continued on his path with the same speed and grit, and the hyena tried to go back to her home in the savannah nearby but every time she collected herself to start moving she saw the little worm wriggling and working so hard only to be on almost the same spot and fell to the ground laughing and crying again. 

Every puddle was a great sea for the little worm, and each fallen tree looked like an insurmountable wall stretching up high into the clouds above. 

“Poor thing” cawed a colorful parrot “I think it would be a mercy if I ate him. But who wants to eat worms when theres mangoes?!” 

The worm wisely did not hear, and then seemed to take particular care to crawl under plants and fallen leaves a little bit more often. Day after day, week after week the little worm wriggled bravely towards the mountain, stopping only to eat and sleep, until he felt in his little bones (actually he didn’t have bones, I am not sure how he felt it) his time had come, and he would die that day. After a particularly nice meal of leaves he wriggled right up to a little plant, made himself a tomb and died. 

The end.

Of his time as a worm any way. Perhaps I should be even more precise and say it was the end of his time as a caterpillar. After about week or so the little guy wriggled his way out of his cocoon “tomb” and flew past the tiger and the hyena, the parrots and all the other creatures of the jungle. He flew to the top of the mountain, toward what he always knew he would find there.

“Wherefore, whoso believeth in God might with surety hope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right hand of God, which hope cometh of faith, maketh an anchor to the souls of men, which would make them sure and steadfast, always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God.” Ether 12:4