I cannot save the world
A poem
Apparently I’m one day late for world bee day, but bees are always important and should always be celebrated. So, here’s a bee poem for you, the spark for which grew out of Alex Dawson’s Messy Writers Club session in March, where we read James A. Pearson’s poem “This Spring”, and is based on a true story that took place the next morning.
I cannot save the world
A bumblebee appears
fat and slow and confused,
stiff legs tapping against the curtain.
One morning two humans,
three lives, narrow down to this.
Honey, no, sugar. Sugar and water,
but wait, she has tipped over,
sprawling on her back
drowning in this makeshift salvation.
Patiently we coax her
until her proboscis finally
finds nourishment.
I imagine her senses still awakening
to this surprising sweetness
found in a metal flower.
She moves still plodding, careful,
sticky-sweet gossamer wings,
and we shower her with water
like a spring rain, hoping to undo
by nature too much nurture.
Liberation—washed clean.
I cannot save the world,
one bumblebee at a time
But five minutes later
she has flown.
I love this, Sarah ... it’s BEE‑autiful! There’s such tenderness in the way you cradle that one small life. And in pure, buzzing synchronicity, the bumblebees have arrived here too! For they’ve just begun building a nest right outside my kitchen door ... as if your poem had been quietly preparing the ground (well wall!) for their arrival.
We checked with a local beekeeper and come late summer they’ll drift on naturally ... leaving the hollow behind for us to fill. So now, the garden is a‑buzzing with gentle, bumbling, velvet‑striped wanderers. Unlike honey bees, they’re very s-l-o-w, docile, non‑stinging souls unless their queen or nest is threatened.
What a Beltane blessing today! This shared hum between your poem and the world outside my door ... a reminder that sometimes the smallest wings carry the sweetest synchronicities. 💖🙏🐝
Such a beautiful story poem, Sarah! Such a tender encounter with a bee, a teacher, and a reminder of shared nature.