Plan Bee?
Plan Bee?
by Michael Patrick VItale
I am currently sitting outside and writing this on the patio in front of the rented space that I call my home. I was working on writing something else, but now I'm writing this. I was enjoying a cup of coffee as I often do every morning.
I just went to reach for my coffee mug, but stopped mid-reach; a bee has just landed on the table right next to the handle of my coffee mug. I'm starring at it right now. It sits there motionless, with what appears to be no immediate intentions of moving. I wonder what it is thinking.
It does not appear to have any ill-will towards me, and I too, have no ill-will towards it. I imagine that it has no desire to cause me any harm, nor do I to it. So, here we both sit, while I, continuing to write and express myself, it lightly brushes its wings and does the secret beautiful things that bees do when you have the opportunity watch one up close like this. After all, for whatever reason, it flew to this table where I am sitting and decided to land by my enormous green Rainforest Cafe coffee mug. However, I do not want to be stung simply because I desire another sip of coffee, so I'm waiting and continuing to type away on my iPad.
Well, no intention of leaving still, so I begin to appreciate it for its subtle parallels to life and just as I do that, it flies away to continue its busy day full of bee things.
I take a big rewarding sip of my coffee and I can't help but think back to a few weeks ago when something remotely similar happened, with the glaring exception of us both reacting to each other in a completely different manner: the results however were just the same; the bee flew away.
I was sitting outside and writing just as I am now, and a bee landed on the table next to my drink, however, on this occasion, it took flight and decided instead to fly around me cyclically, repeatedly, and eventually landed right on my shirt. I remained motionless and let it do its bee things that only bees know, for about 5 or 10 minutes. I could feel myself growing impatient. I had things to do, but I didn't feel comfortable returning to them with a bee on my shirt.
I started feeling resentment towards the bee for taking its sweet-ass time doing whatever the hell it was doing. It eventually launched into the air again, only to continue to fly around me. I sat there trying to remain calm, but this time, it was flying closer to my face and I could hear its buzzing wings as it continued to make its rounds.
At this point, I freaked out and jumped from my chair and tried to distance myself from the bee as I had no clue as to what its intentions were and I didn't want to be stung. I ended up running over to the opposite side of the patio and it followed me there, continuing to find interest in me and fly around me half-hazard. I didn't want to hurt the bee so I had no choice but to once again remain perfectly still and let the bee do its bee stuff. It flew over to the opposite end of the patio and buzzed around something else for a little while. It landed. It flew away. It came back and flew around me some more.
I remained motionless and watched. No sooner did I decide to return to a state of calm, than it decided to fly away. I wonder what it was thinking? Did I look like a flower? Was I a layover from its busy day of work, doing bee stuff? What attracted it to me in the first place? How often do we play energy ping pong with each other? How often do we mistake each others intentions, yet act nonetheless? How much of our interactions with one another resides within the domain of cause and effect?
I will never know for sure. Perhaps you may not either. However, why should that ever stop curiosity from chasing its own tail, in favor of that which is not wagging, politely.
