The Two Maggots
As we enter Elul, a timely story that Pete Seeger liked to tell.
Dear Friends,
Long ago I heard the incomparable folksinger Pete Seeger (1919-2014) tell a story about two little maggots, and the story has stayed with me ever since*. I am sure the telling has changed as I have repeated this story over the years - Pete called that the “folk process.” But I’m pretty certain that I’ve got the essence of it right. Here’s how it goes:
There were two maggots - you know, little worms - who were living in a garden shed. Not a bad place to be if you’re a maggot. One morning they happened to be sitting on a shovel, when a man picked up the shovel, slung it over his shoulder, and headed to work. The maggots held on for dear life, but finally one of them slipped off and then the other. The first maggot landed in a crack in the sidewalk, while the second maggot landed in a big pile of fresh dog turd. Well, the first maggot was in terrible straits. He tried to climb out of the crack, but the sides were too steep. It was dark, and there was nothing to eat or drink. Meanwhile, the maggot who fell in the dog turd ate to his heart’s content. What a life! After 3 days or so, this maggot thought to himself, “Hey, I wonder what happened to my brother?” He decided to go looking. He humped his way along the sidewalk until he came to a crack. He peered over the edge and thought he saw something, so he called down, “Is that you, brother?” “Why, yes!” the first maggot shouted. “You look terrible, brother,” the second maggot said, “Want happened to you!” “Well, I don’t know, I fell off that shovel and found myself in this awful place. I’ve been trapped here and I’m starving. But you, brother, you’re so fat and sleek! How did you do it?” The fat maggot replied, “Brains and perseverance, brother, brains and perseverance.”
This evening, right after the sun sets, the slim crescent of the new moon of Elul will briefly appear just above the western horizon. This sighting marks Rosh Hodesh Elul, the New Moon of the month of Elul. Rosh Hashanah is now one month away. On the Jewish calendar, we are entering the season of teshuvah, a time for introspection and honest self-evaluation. For some reason, the story of those maggots is with me these days, and I want to embrace its message.
Lord, keep me reasonably humble as I keep stumbling through this life. Help me laugh at myself, and at life’s absurdities. May I be ever grateful for the unearned gifts that sustain me. As I think about Pete Seeger’s hapless maggots, may I always remember that there, but for fortune, go I.
With love,
Rabbi Jonathan Kligler
*After reading this post, my friend Andy Teirstein informed me that this story is by Carl Sandburg, and that Pete Seeger learned it from him. It appears in Sandburg’s epic prose-poem, “The People, Yes” (1936).
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