Major crises rarely cause our undoing; rather, it is the silent, incremental accumulation of minor grievances that gradually hollows out our inner strength.
“On the slope of Long’s Peak in Colorado (USA) lies the ruin of a gigantic tree. Naturalists tell us that it stood for some four hundred years. It was a seedling when Columbus landed at San Salvador, and half grown when the pilgrims settled at Plymouth.
During the course of its long life, it was struck by lightning fourteen times and the innumerable avalanches and storms of four centuries thundered past it. It survived them all.
In the end, however, an army of beetles attacked the tree and levelled it to the ground. The insects ate their way through the bark and gradually destroyed the inner strength of the tree by their tiny but incessant attacks.
A forest giant which age had not withered, nor lightning blasted, nor storms subdued, fell at last before beetles so small that a man could crush them between his forefinger and his thumb.
There is a parallel in this story which should serve as a warning to us. Most of us can survive times of crisis. We summon the strength of faith or resolve for most any battle that we face head on. Whether it is in our professional or personal lives, we often overcome great obstacles. It is the small things like jealousy, anger, resentment, pettiness and negativity that eat us from the inside, which often bring about our downfall. Unlike a giant tree, we can identify and fight those moral or ethical ‘beetles.’ We must, however, be constantly on guard.
Author: Dr. Harry Emerson Fosdick
Source: http://www.rogerdarlington.me.uk
Image above: Picture post card shows Bear Lake, Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado, with Long’s Peak and Glacier Gorge in the background. Image courtesy https://www.digitalcommonwealth.org/
The first time ground beetles were featured on postage stamps, by Portuguese Guinea-Bissau in the year 1953. Image courtesy https://www.researchgate.net/
The ancient legacy and astonishing diversity of beetles
Masters of Earth’s history: Beetles (order Coleoptera) are the most diverse group of organisms on the planet, representing nearly a quarter of all known animal life forms. Fossil evidence shows that beetles have roamed the Earth for over 300 million years, easily surviving multiple mass extinction events—including the cataclysm that wiped out the dinosaurs—making them true symbols of biological resilience.
Ecological dualism: While tiny pests like the mountain pine beetle can challenge ancient trees during environmental stress, the vast majority of the world’s 400,000+ beetle species perform vital, life-sustaining roles. From dung beetles that recycle nutrients and enrich soil to predatory beetles that naturally control agricultural pests, these remarkable creatures are fundamental architects of global ecosystems, proving that even the smallest entities hold immense power to shape the world around them.