Aesop tells a fantastic fable about a sweet old agony aunt who carefully gathers morsels of food for the coming cold season. Nestled in bog standard caverns of spongy moss and peat, the aunt stored kettles and cauldrons of lentils and limas.
Soon, the summer sun set on the moss tundra, and the winter moon took over the night sky. The agony aunt, however, spent her days stirring her soups with care. Even in her sleep, she rode that big dipper round and round those cherished kernels of food.
Late one morning, as the sun hit its zenith in the cold blue sky, a ladybird appeared on her sphagnum step. "I watched you from afar this summer, dear aunt, and I know you are full of beans. I come to you for help."
"Enter, dear friend. Please, have some lentils." The agony aunt took a bowl from the shelf. "Why is it you have no food this winter?"
The ladybird opened her spotted wings, revealing a barren and empty side. "You see, dear aunt, I spent all summer looking for brown sugar and molasses. Unfortunately, everywhere I looked, there was a spanner in the works. You see, I cannot hunt for toffee. So here I am, seeking comfort in your bog."
"Keep you pecker up, dear friend," the aunt consoled, inwardly wondering if her new friend had instead sailed too close to the wind. She filled the ladybird's bowl to the brim. "Here, I've got the cure for your sunken side. Take this meal. You'll feel better soon enough. Suck it and see."
The ladybird devoured the delicious meal. The agony aunt had helped another famished soul.
