Lately I attract bees. When I’m in the pool, honeybees land on me and drink drops of water off my skin. I do provide them with bowls of water with rocks in them, but I guess I’m more fun. They do tickle.
I occasionally get a wasp, too. Nothing ever bites, since I sit still. I’m more choosy about wasps than bees.
But today I made a new bee friend. She was a leaf cutter bee. She was so shiny!
She just kept buzzing me, so I stood still and let her explore. In return, I got to look at her up close enough to see her abdomen expand and contract, and her mouth parts checking me out.
She preferred my right hand, which made getting pictures harder, but that’s okay. I just enjoyed the interlude of peace. There are many similar bees, but I hope she’s the pugnacious leaf cutter bee (Megachile pugnata), because that’s such a fun name. Whatever she is, I adored her yellow belly.
I even made a video (with blurry parts), so you can see her pulsating.
It’s this, folks, that makes life worth living. Knowing we can connect like this with fellow inhabitants of our planet makes me feel whole, even in crazy times. There’s something new and unexpected everywhere you look.
The Hermits' Rest 