Chester The Ladybug

There once was a ladybug named Chester. He was not usually a very happy ladybug.

First off, Chester was a he, but everyone he met assumed he was a she.

"Look at that ladybug," they would say, "isn't she cute?"

"I'm not cute," Chester would say, "I'm handsome!". But all ladybugs have very little voices, and Chester had an even littler voice, so no one ever paid any attention to him. He said it over and over, but no one ever listened to Chester. If only I was bigger, thought Chester, I could tell everyone who I am and I would never have to worry again.

And that was the real problem. All ladybugs are little, but Chester was very, very little, even for a ladybug. He had a little voice, and little wings, and little legs. It seemed that no one else was as little as he was.

Since everyone thought he was a she and he was very, very, little, Chester often felt sad. And, like most ladybugs do when they feel sad, he decided to talk to the old ladybug who lived in the rhubarb and see if she had any advice.

"How long," Chester asked her, "would it take me to get to Lake Michigan? I think that, if I were there, it wouldn't be so bad to be little. I could make lots of friends and be very happy, and never have to think about being little again. And I don't think that anyone there would mistake me for a she!"

"Well," said the old ladybug, "you are very, very little, so I don't think that you will be able to get to Lake Michigan, or even Lake Superior, unless you can find someone to help you."

So Chester went to talk to his friend, the bird, and explained his problem to him.

"How long," Chester asked him, "do you think it would take you to fly to Lake Michigan?"

The bird thought for a moment. "I think I could fly there pretty quickly, but your legs are very little, so they wouldn't be strong enough to hold on for the whole ride. I'm sorry, but I wouldn't want to drop you."

Chester decided that maybe getting a ride with a bird wasn't such a good idea, anyway. After all, he said to himself, everyone knows that birds sometimes eat bugs - even ladybugs - if they get hungry enough. And, on a trip that long, any bird would probably get hungry at least once.

So Chester went to talk to his friend, the cat, and explained his problem to her.

The cat thought for a moment. "It would take a little while, but I don't know the way, and your voice is very little, so if you told me where to go, I don't think I could hear you. I'm sorry, but I wouldn't want to lose you."

Chester decided that getting a ride with a cat wasn't such a good idea, anyway. After all, he thought, everyone knows that cats rarely take directions well, anyways, and he didn't want to end up in Winnipeg by mistake.

So Chester went to talk to his friend, the pig, and explained the problem to him.

The pig thought for a moment, "I think I could walk there in a while, but I would get very hot from all that walking, and your wings are too little to cool me down and we may end up getting stuck in the hot sun. I'm sorry, but I don't want you to get a sunburn."

Chester decided that getting a ride with a pig wasn't such a good idea, anyway. After all, he thought, everyone knows that pigs smell... well, like pigs, and after riding all the way to Lake Michigan, he might end up smelling like a pig, too. Chester liked smelling like a ladybug.

So Chester went back to the old ladybug who lived in the rhubarb.

"My friend the bird would take me, but my legs are too little and he doesn't want to drop me. My friend the cat would take me, but my voice is too little, and she doesn't want me to get lost. My friend the pig would take me, but my wings are too little and he doesn't want me to get stuck in the hot sun. How else can I get to Lake Michigan?"

The old ladybug looked at Chester and laughed. "You have a friend who wants to make sure you don't fall down, and another friend who wants to make sure that you don't get lost, and another friend who wants to make sure that you don't get stuck in the sun. Why would you want to go away when you have friends like that right here?"

Suddenly Chester laughed, too. "It's not so bad being little," he said, "if you have friends who care about you!" He paused, considering, "But I'm still going to shoot the next person who calls me 'she'".

The End