There was once a small field where a colony of ants lived alongside a grasshopper. The grasshopper always sat on a leaf and sang music, while the ants worked day and night gathering food for the winter.
One day, a kind ant stopped and asked the grasshopper what he was doing, since winter was right around the corner. The grasshopper replied that he still had a few months left and could start later. He sat back down and continued singing. The ant then continued walking back to the colony with the food they had gathered.
A few months later, the same thing happened. The grasshopper said he would start soon because he still had plenty of time.
When only ten days were left before winter, the grasshopper began to panic and tried to gather as much food as possible. When winter arrived, he did not have enough food to survive the entire season, so he had only one option: to ask for help.
He went to the ant colony and asked the ant he had spoken with before if he could stay with them. The ant agreed, but only if the grasshopper promised to start collecting food early the next year.
When the next year came, the grasshopper had learned his lesson. He began working early, and this time he had enough food to survive the winter. From that day on, he never started late again.