Gavin Liu, G11, BASIS International School Shenzhen

I was sitting in my 8th grade biology class, learning about “beneficial insects,” insects that are beneficial to human farmland and survival, and “injurious insects,” which are harmful to humans. Frogs, for example, are beneficial animals, as they hunt injurious insects, whereas locusts are injurious insects, as they eat crops.

I am a curious person, to such a large extent that my parents constantly describe me as naive. My favorite book series was “One Hundred Thousand Whys.” I always sat in the front row, asking question after question. Even the teachers, known for their patience, sometimes became irritated by my tsunami of inquiry.

“What about snakes? Are they beneficial or injurious?” I shouted out, and then my voice grew quieter as I finished, noticing that this seemed like a grotesque question.

“Probably beneficial,” the teacher paused briefly and said.

When she turned her head to the whiteboard and was ready to continue the lecture, I realized something was wrong with her answer.

“But snakes eat frogs,” I asked again.

“But they bite people too,” she answered with a perfunctory effort.

I was about to add that they also eat mice, but I could see her obvious impatience, so I stopped.

It reminded me of an essay we learned in Chinese class, which praised bees.

“The internal organization of bees is refined, the division of labor is clear, the cooperation is efficient, and the team spirit is outstanding. Once the flowers are found, they will summon their friends, collect powder and nectar. When an individual is attacked, the swarm comes together to fight. With enough collective intelligence and strength, they will protect each other and the hive at all costs.”

When I asked my teacher why we didn’t write an essay to praise ants, which also display excellent team spirit, she answered, “Because bees provide us with delicious honey.”

So I told myself that ants are inferior because they think only about themselves, while bees work selflessly for humans.