The Reckless Bumblebee
This bumblebee stung me, and now it’s dead. I did not kill it on purpose - nor would I have, because me and the bumble-e-bees normally get along swell - but the fact that it stung me on the ball of my foot; (a.k.a., the underside of my foot) as I was taking a step, unfortunately sealed this bee’s fate and gave me quite the sharp pain in the foot.
But, hey, it’s the circle of life - right, yo? I mean, most bumblebees avoid the dirty-side of my foot, even when I’m wearing flip-flops, as I was today. Is it an instinct they are born with? - I don’t know: if so, this one picked up a recessive gene somewhere along the way or was just plain reckless in life. Anyway, the circle of life rolls on: within thirty minutes of falling to the concrete slab in our backyard, the bee was already discovered by a pack of rabid fireants (you can just see the head of one of them peeking out from behind the bee on the lower right side). When I returned to the scene with my camera, the ants had already formed a tidy bucket-brigade off toward the edge of the concrete. Industrious. And, inspiring.
What can we learn from this? Don’t be a reckless bumblebee. I suppose that sums it up.