The Grasshopper is a solitary and pretty creature who does little but eat and wanders through grasses and chirrup. But pressed by hunger in barren land it will scurry to any place where food remains – and so do all the other Grasshoppers! This creates a crowd and they all push and shove against each other to eat and survive and in so doing they tickle each others legs.

Now you might think that this would make them feel merry and frolicsome, but No! not the Grasshopper! For this constant crowded tickling turns him into a Locust! He becomes quite ugly and sprouts wings and rushes off in flight with his fellows and they greedily eat everything in their path. Everyone hates them.

Given help from nature and a situation of peace and calm to gather our thoughts in contemplation we can all find our way back to our more beautiful manifestations and so does the Grasshopper, I am glad to tell.

For when he is full and no longer starving he, being naturally solitary, wanders away again from his fellows and wonder of wonders, away from the crowd with all tickling ended, he becomes once again the chirruping green fellow we all know and love (well, I love them and hope you do too).

So, if your brother or sister turns ugly, greedy and generally nasty and pushes to grab everything and seems to be changing from the beautiful person you know (they may even grow dark stripes and wings, who knows) consider the Grasshopper and give him the food of kindness until he feels full again and also the blessings of space and peace and soon he will chirrup again.

Life can transform us all. If we are unwitting or pressed by harsh circumstance we may become things we would not want to be. Desperation to survive can cause extremes. Take care of the Grasshopper.