Ants and Bees, a Metaphor

Life lessons are everywhere!

Let’s look at  Ants and  Bees as metaphors for our lives.

We can learn a lot from watching ants and bees living in community and working for the greater good.

More than any other species, ants and bees function as parts of a whole. They cannot and do not survive as individuals; they survive as members of a group, and the group’s survival is the implicit goal of each individual creature’s life.

We, on the other hand, strongly value individuality and often negatively associate ants and bees with a lack of independence.

But when we look closer at these amazing creatures, we can learn valuable lessons about how much we can achieve when we band together with others to work for a higher purpose.

Most ants and bees have highly specified roles within their communities, some of which are biologically dictated, and we think they work within the confines of their roles without complaint, never wishing to be something other than what they are. They also display selfless service as they work for the common good.

 Of course, if you’ve seen the 1998 movie ANTZ, you’ll remember that Woody Allen, Z-4195 (our hero?), doesn’t fit the uncomplaining mold as he strives for individuality within the communal work-ethic of the ant colony.

But then we usually “humanize” our storybook characters, whether it be ants or snowmen like in FROZEN!

And I read a new book this fall called THE BEES: A NOVEL by Laline Paull that was fascinating. Flora 717, a lowly sanitation worker, was a member of the lowest caste in her orchard hive where work and sacrifice are the highest virtues and yet she was different from the others. And therein lies the story!

It is so easy to anthropomorphize (what a word!): to apply human values, feelings and personalities to things not-human.

And that’s where we often find our metaphors, our lessons! We can identify with the struggles of the individuals and also see the importance of the values of the group.

 

In many ways, the ants and bees are like the individual cells of one body, living and dying as necessary to preserve the integrity of the whole body, not to protect themselves as individuals.

Ants and bees can inspire us to fully own what we have to offer and to put it to use in the pursuit of a goal that will benefit all of humanity, whether it be raising consciousness about the environment, feeding the hungry, or raising a happy child.

Each one of us has certain talents we were born with, as well as skills we have acquired.

For me, speaking and writing and teaching (all part of being a MOM) are my avenues for sharing and contributing what I can to better the world.

When we each apply our gifts, knowing that we are one part of a greater organism working to better the whole world, we honor and implement the wisdom of ants and bees.

So,

What aspect of the greater community is important to you?

Where are you drawn to make a difference?

What is something greater than yourself that you have committed to?