Unafraid, Like the Bee

the habit of fear

Getting the work done.

Hello Friends,

I’m sorry for the late delivery of this newsletter. Family issues abounded last week, and unfortunately delayed all my creative work. Today’s post is shorter than usual, but I hope you find it useful.

Over the summer I grew a mint plant in a large pot. This weekend while preparing my garden for fall, I moved the mint pot onto my porch steps so I could rake the area. Before shifting it back, I went inside for a drink of water. When I came out, I noticed a honey bee hovering over the pale-purple mint flowers, which had begun to blossom in the warm September sun. It landed, gathered pollen, hovered, and landed again on each tiny flower. The bee was diligent about its work. I’m sure if I had moved the pot back into the garden, it would have simply followed the flowers and soldiered on. But instead of disturbing it, I let it “bee.”

Reflecting On

getting the work done

The bee knew what was important in that moment—gathering pollen. It didn’t care if the mint plant had moved. It didn’t see the obstacle.

I thought about this simple idea and how it can become complicated by our own negativity, seeing all the obstacles instead of the path forward. I was inspired by the bee, watching its legs maneuver along the petals of each flower, ignoring me and my giant size, ignoring the danger lurking so close—I could have squashed it.

The Heart of It

Many times I see only the obstacles to my dreams. They loom large all around like heavy storm clouds. They seem wild and untamable. But if I set those thoughts aside and concentrate on the work, the storms fizzle away. This is difficult sometimes because those dark thoughts are rooted in fear: fear of success, fear of failure, fear of being a fully-blossomed self.

Human beings are born with a certain amount of healthy fear. We didn’t always have so much protection from the elements, wild animals, and other hostile tribes. But I think these natural fears get tangled with other, unreasonable ones, and sometimes it’s difficult to tell one from another.

When I feel creative fear, the best way forward is to set it aside and concentrate on the work. This way, joy has a chance of sneaking in. Tackling smaller tasks at first is a great way to enter this mindset. Sneaking up on the task with short creative sessions fools fear and the work becomes more like play. Suddenly, fear is manageable. Beating back fear by jumping into the work and doing it over and over again helps to make the work a habit, and diminishes the habit of fear, one flower at a time. And as our reality shifts from thought to action, we will “bee” our whole, true selves. Unafraid, and living our dreams.

Until next time, how will you be like the bee?

Jan

*Bee symbolism is different across cultures. Read more about bee symbolism here.

*Photo by: Mariya from Pixabay

*If you enjoyed this post, please click the heart and/or leave a comment. I love hearing from readers. If you’d like to support my newsletter, consider upgrading to a paid subscription.

*All of my posts are written without the aid of AI.

*Thanks so much for reading! I appreciate every one of you.