Some of you have perhaps heard of the rather important, extremely significant city known as Squiggly-Wiggly-Ville. Unfortunately, however, there was a time when the outstanding citizens of Squiggly-Wiggly-Ville got a bad rap. People said that they were dirty, that the only time they would take a shower was when it rained and they went outside. People said that they were disgusting, that they would eat anything.
One day, however, the outstanding citizens of Squiggly-Wiggly-Ville decided it was time to do something about their city’s awful reputation. It was time to do something about their city’s image. No longer would they be so despised and looked down upon. They would make the world know how great they were. They would conduct a great, big advertising campaign—what we sometimes call a public relations campaign. And, that’s exactly what they did. They put up signs everywhere that at first seemed a bit mysterious and hard to understand. The signs said things like: “We’re not just dirty, we’re necessary” or “Don’t look at us with disgust, or soon you’ll bite the dust.” Well, people were rather surprised to see these signs, and because they didn’t quiet understand them at first, they had to go home and read in their books about the citizens of Squiggly-Wiggly-Ville and what made them so valuable and necessary.
After people started to read about the citizens of Squiggly-Wiggly-Ville, they not only realized that they were valuable and necessary, they realized that they were role models for the rest of us. The outstanding citizens of Squiggly-Wiggly-Ville were role models because they were good at caring for others and caring for the earth.
Did you all know that each one of you has seen the outstanding citizens of Squiggly-Wiggly-Ville? You have seen them when they are all dirty, and you have probably seen them when they come outside to take a shower in the rain. That’s right! The outstanding citizens of Squiggly-Wiggly-Ville are worms!
Worms might be dirty and disgusting, but all of us depend upon them. Worms do things like eat dead leaves and turn them into nutrients for the soil. They also make sure the soil gets the air and water that it needs. If worms didn’t take care of the soil, there would be no plants, and if there were no plants, there would be no animals, and if there were no animals, there would be no “us.” We all depend upon worms. Worms really are great and necessary. And, they are also outstanding citizens of planet earth. They care for the earth, and in that way, they care for us. I believe each of us in our own way should strive to be like worms. Are all of you ready to go out and be worms?