Be a Bee

Somewhere along the way, many of us decided we had to be butterflies.

Beautiful, agreeable, floating gracefully from person to person, making every room a little brighter. It sounds lovely until you realise how exhausting it is to spend your life performing aerial diplomacy for people who may not even notice your wings.

Then there are bees.

Bees wake up with a full schedule and absolutely no interest in being admired. They are not checking who liked them. They are not wondering whether they looked awkward near that flower yesterday. They are busy. They have honey to make.

What makes bees funny is that they seem to understand boundaries better than most humans.

They will mind their business all day long. They will contribute to society. They will stay productive. They will even help flowers bloom.

But they also carry a tiny reminder that kindness and access are not the same thing.

Disturb them enough, and suddenly there is a meeting nobody enjoys.

Maybe that is why bees never seem as stressed as we are. They are not trying to be loved by every flower in the field. They are not collecting approval. They are simply moving through the day with purpose.

As this morning begins, it might be worth wondering how much energy is spent growing wings for other people when there is honey waiting to be made.

-Oluwademilade from MANI