The book of Proverbs has so many great lessons for life. One very well known lesson is that we can learn from so many people, animals and things useful tools for life. The ant provides a great lesson in industriousness. An ant can lift things many times more than its body weight. Ants work hard and don’t rest.

A great message to the lazy person is to look to the ant for inspiration.

Recently, scientists have discovered something else that we can learn from ants.Ants have been recorded performing “helpful acts”. So far, only dolphins, capuchin monkeys and now ants act in this way.

In a sophisticated scenario, ants were able to learn a new skill with an unfamiliar barrier to rescue fellow ants. The ants would not rescue other types of ants or insects. You can read about the whole thing here.

This gives a whole new meaning to learning from the ant. We can also learn how important it is to save each other. How vital it is to feel such a connection that we go to great lengths to rescue one another.

Rescue is not limited to a guy stuck under a huge boulder or a drowning swimmer. Rescue means to be concerned with all parts of another’s life. In America we are taught to mind our own business. This is true to an extent, but when someone needs help or assistance or guidance we need to learn from the ant and provide it.

In U.S. law there is no duty for a bystander to help someone in need. Not criminally and not civilly (there are a few notable exceptions). The ant doesn’t believe in that. The ant goes to great lengths to help it’s trapped liege.

This issue has come up recently in the Orthodox Jewish community. If you know what I am talking about, great. If you don’t that’s fine too.

My point is, we need to learn from the ant. We cannot sit by idly when our brethren are suffering and crying for help. We are responsible to each other and have a duty to act when we see injustice and unnecessary suffering. It is time to pull back the sheet and at the cost of exposing wrong-doers, save and rescue the one’s who need us most.

V’hamayvin, yavin.

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