“I will stay outside!” a young ant, Alex, screamed.

“But the anteater is coming. We need to get to safety,” his friends tried to explain, amidst the deafening noise of panicking ants.

“I WANT MY FREEDOM” Alex bellowed, standing firmly in place. He had riled up a gang of seven other ants, fools who believed their freedom was above their safety.

Considering Alex, a hopeless cause, the other ants rushed to the security of the anthill. Granted, there was almost no space, bodies pressed together in a sweaty soup. It would be extremely difficult to stay in the confines of this place for such a long time, unable to breathe the fresh air.

Yet, they would be safe.

Alex and his squad roamed about freely, sashaying across the grass completely carefree. They laughed and joked, while the rest of the ants prepared for the lock-down in their home. They mocked the ant community claiming that there were no anteaters, that it was all fake. Bursting with ego, they claimed that they were invincible, the anteaters could never take them down.

Thump, thump, thump.

The ants with the anthill internally screamed, desperately wishing that Alex and his troop would return home safely. They hoped that his arrogance would not kill him. All of a sudden, a giant monster emerged. The anteaters were coming. Their tongues investigated the rocks, turning them over, looking behind, looking for any ants. Yet, Alex and his comrades pranced around gaily, ignorant of the danger around them. This was not naivety, this was arrogance.

Moments later, horror struck.

The anteater’s tongue snaked around 2 of his friends, gulping them immediately. Their screams were drowned out by the crunch of their bones. The others ran in fright, trying to get back to the anthill. Little did they know what would happen.

The anteater followed them, leading him right to the treasure trove. One swipe and the entire structure fell over, revealing hundreds of terrified ants. The anteater ate them like they were tic-tacs, gulping 50 at once. The elders were trapped, while the young fled in every direction, avoiding the monster among them.

Alex ran to a rock and sat there still shaking. He shivered realizing the horror of what he had done.

I want to live his mind called out desperately. I am sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you… I am sorry… he wailed internally.

Is freedom worth the risk?

Living in a pandemic, that is the question we should answer.