FRED THE ANT: Journey To Find The Self Stephen Blankenship Author

This is a narrative poem about an army ant with human consciousness. Fred the Ant comes to the realization that he is trapped in a construct where individuality is non-existent. He wants out. Gradually he comes to realize that he and all his fellow soldiers have neurological framework in their brains that restricts them to the confines of a set perimeter and in essence they are all slaves. He conceives of a plan to escape and explore the unknown world on his own to achieve his full potential. The daily routine of an army ant is to search for food and store it. In this process they have to chase and engage in mortal combat to achieve it; bugs and worms of many varieties have to be chased down and killed by committee. However, there is one mystical meat that on very rare occasions falls from the sky and is so aromatic and delicious it drives the ants into a frenzy. That would be bacon. Once ingested it produces a narcotic effect and alters a soldier's behavior in a very negative way: loss of a sense of community responsibility and moral sensibilities. Some soldiers crave this substance so much they overdose and die from it. On one very fortuitous day a big hunk of bacon falls from the heavens and wreaks havoc on ant compounds far and wide. During all this chaos Fred makes his great escape, but even he with the power of human reasoning he is drawn by the strong allure of this intoxicating substance and ends up gorging himself into a state of unconsciousness. Fred wakes up the next morning disgusted with himself, knowing he infinitely more intelligent than his fellow soldiers and vows to never be tempted by temptation again. He then begins his long journey of self-discovery learning about the real world and being tested by trials that reveal the authentic Fred the Ant.