Friday, August 7, 2009

what might have been



this morning i sat in my big comfy chair reading.

a tapping at the window entered my awareness and hovered there.

it was insistent!

i closed my book and watched as a bee repeatedly flew into the window.
after several dozen calamitous bumps it decided to feel the glass
and worked its way across the transparent surface with its front legs scratching and scraping.

but to no effect.

for what it wanted was a bright red flower on the other side of the glass.
i am certain of this because it concentrated its efforts in the area of the glass closest to the flower.

it made me think of all the times i too have clawed and scratched at a seemingly invisible and impenetrable surface, wanting something beautiful or necessary-to-me-in-that-moment.

but to no effect.

the bee flew away.
with stories of what might have been.

leaving me to think about the idea of this story.

18 comments:

Elizabeth said...

An apt metaphor for our searching for something out side.
The red flower is beautiful.

Dave King said...

Ahhh! That was a real paper hanky story, that was. Very well told, too. A little gem.

steven said...

hello elizabeth, thanks for your kind comments. have a peaceful day. steven

steven said...

hi dave, thanks for dropping by! thanks also for your thoughtful comments. have a lovely day. steven

Bonnie Zieman, M.Ed. said...

We all seem to reach for the unattainable, when like the bee we just have to turn around to see the bounty already available to us.
Thanks Steven.

steven said...

hi bonnie - that's so true. there's so much already available to us, it's to me more truthful to go with the flow. to let happen what happens. have a lovely summer day!!! steven

Tess Kincaid said...

I love the little halo over the bee in your pretty charm. And speaking of charm...charming story, Steven.

ellen abbott said...

Not everything that looks easy to get, is.

steven said...

hi willow! thankyou. i noticed quite a few people are posting about bees today or are planning bee-related posts. more synchronicity in the little bit of the blogging world we share. have a peaceful day at the manor. steven

steven said...

hi ellen, i kind of like it that way myself! it somehow makes the experience or process more worthy to have to earn it. have a lovely day. steven

Dan Gurney said...

I hope the bee was able to do a 180 degree turn and find some find flowers it could drink nectar from.

steven said...

hi dan, well right behind where the poor little guy was banging his head against our front window, there are all sorts of flowers planted expressly for that purpose. so the metaphor of the story could carry on - why did he / she fly past those?!!! have a peaceful afternoon. steven

Kay said...

Perhaps even bees want the very thing that they can't have..lovely post.
Kay

steven said...

hello kay, thanks for dropping by!! i laughed when i read what you wrote - it's entirely possible isn't it!!!
have a lovely evening. steven

Eryl said...

They are particularly delicious looking flowers, I'd probably bang my head a few times to get to them!

I had to rescue a sleepy bee from getting tangled in the linen I'd hung out to dry (to no avail, it rained) today. Perhaps its getting a bit late in the year for them to behave in a sensible bee like manner.

steven said...

hi eryl, well exactly!!! sometimes it's alright to bang your head in an exercise in futility just because!!!! i think the nights are getting cool enough now to slow them up a bit. early fall is what it feels like here. i'm up for a bit more summer but i'll take what i'm given! have a lovely evening. steven

Cheryl Cato said...

what a great analogy and you the introspective one would put this all together. i'm so grateful that you did.
Cheryl

steven said...

hello lizzy, thanks for the generous thoughts. i sometimes wish i wasn't so introspective. that i just experienced things as they were. flat. but i think i'd miss most of the point. so i just let the thoughts roll!!! have a lovely day. steven