Ignacio the Iguana comes from a rainforest in Costa Rica. There his favorite hobbies were sitting up up up in the trees and basking low low low by the riverbank.  Ignacio was a lazy iguana, but he was very clever and always had big ideas.

“Why should I dash down the tree, and plod back up to get from the sun to the water?”

“Because that’s what iguanas do,” said Hortencia, his best friend.

Ignacio did not want to work hard. Instead he promised, “I will build an elevator.”

Of course constructing an elevator takes many hours of work and can be very tiring. Ignacio did not want to do that! So as he lay in the sun he casually spoke to the other creatures of the forest. Many of the iguanas were willing to help. Other animals were more reluctant.

“Think of it this way,” said Ignacio to the Parakeet, “if one of your eggs should fall, the elevator will bring it back up.”

“If one of my eggs should fall,” replied the Parakeet, “the egg would surely crack!”

While the Parakeet knew to stay away from this idea, Ignacio convinced the tree frogs, the Heron, the ants, and the beetles to help him. He drew up plans in the sand by the riverbank and assigned all the animals a task—creating ropes and pulleys, clearing out a log for the elevator car, and creating signals for safety.

Everyone was hard at work except Ignacio.

“Why should I work when I drew up all the plans?”

“Because that’s what iguanas do,” replied Hortencia who refused to take part in the scheme anymore.

Soon the other animals grew irritated that Ignacio did not work. They too stopped what they were doing and returned to bask in the sun or lounge in the trees. The elevator was not completed.

Everything went back to normal. Still, Ignacio dreamed of his elevator.

“One day,” he would tell Hortencia, “I will travel up an elevator to the top of the trees.”

“One day,” she replied, “you will work as hard at realizing your dreams as you do thinking them up!”

Ignacio paid her no attention. He was already dreaming up another fantastically laborious plan.