My mom talks about these ants that would come every once in a while in the countryside. They would assemble as an army and they would literally go through your land wreaking havoc. My mother then a little girl would run as fast as she could to lead the cattle and any other farm animals to the top of a mountain.
My grandparents had what I would call a mezzanine within the big house and my aunts and uncles would pull with all their might the sacks of flour, beans, rice, sugar, salt, and any other materials the ants would find enticing. My mom and her siblings would sleep amongst the sacks and they would keep warm by huddling together. The next day, my grandfather would wake up before sunrise and start with the cleaning process. My grandma and him would most definitely find some of their animals dead, their bodies had served as food for the ants. It would take days if not weeks for things to go back to their usual rhythm.
There are experiences in life that are like those ants. They come with full force. It takes sheer will power to get up and try again. There have been times I ask myself why we do it. Why is it that when we have been beaten down we get up again? I see it everyday on the news, in my family, with my students. I see it in myself. There is this human trait we have that keeps us from falling apart because even when we do fall apart, we are able to pick up the pieces and start anew.
As the beginning of a new year is approaching, I sense its presence within me. Despite the hardships we have endured and those that will come, I know we are able to move along. I think of the road we have traveled and conclude that surely, if we have made it this far we can go a bit farther. Perhaps we have not followed the easiest road, but that is no of concern to us. Seldom are easy experiences memorable.
| Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— | |
| I took the one less traveled by, | |
And that has made all the difference.
The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost
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