Sympathy for a Bee

 
On Father’s Day, we all hopped into the family van
It would be a two hour drive down to the beach
As I drove through the long and winding highway
My wife yelled “A BEE!’ somewhere out of reach

“Bee still” I told my wife trying to joke about it
Thinking the little guy is more scared us than her of him
“Leave it alone” I said as I kept my eye on the road
I’ve talked to bees before and I’d have to do it again

About an hour later we stopped for quick break
(The dog had an accident and had to let her out)
Meanwhile as the kids cleaned the back of the van
I found the bee in the cup holder a little knocked out

I grabbed a napkin and picked him up very gently
“Come on buddy” I said, “we gotta get you out”
I placed him on some brush at the gas station lot
As he struggled I said “sorry buddy” feeling bad somehow

Later as I walked on the beach my feet in the cold water
I thought, “that guy caught a sixty mile ride with me
I left him far away from home, now he’s all alone
Hopefully he recoups, that poor little bee

There’s something about walking on the wet sand
That gives me time to pause and think about little things
It’s been a week since I left that bee in that brush
Now I wrote a poem hoping he had strength in his wings