The Legend of Maize - Mexican

Once, there was a tiny black ant. He scurried on the warm earth, a long, long time ago. The little ant and his friends watched the people. They saw the people were hungry and their tummies rumbled. But the ant knew a secret, a wonderful secret hidden deep inside a tall, stony mountain. It was a treasure that could feed everyone. This is the story of how a tiny ant helped bring that treasure to the world, a story called The Legend of Maize.

One day, a great and kind god named Quetzalcóatl saw the hungry people and wanted to help. He asked all the big animals if they knew where to find better food, but no one did. But the tiny black ant knew. He crawled up to the big god and wiggled his little antennae. He told Quetzalcóatl that he knew the way. The god was so big and the ant was so small, but the kind god listened. The little ant led him through green fields, right to the big mountain. The ant showed him a tiny, tiny crack where he would sneak in and out with one golden grain at a time.

Quetzalcóatl was too big to fit through the tiny crack. So, with his big, strong arms, he gently pushed the mountain apart. Push, push, push. Inside, it was full of colorful maize. There was yellow maize like the sun and red maize like a sunset. There was blue maize like the sky and white maize like the clouds. The people cheered. They learned to plant the seeds and grow tall corn. They were never hungry again. This reminds us that even the smallest helper can make a big, big difference.