.....mercy

Yogis,
I’m sure you have noticed. The bugs are back!

Big ones, little ones and some so small we can’t see. They may fly, walk or slither, come in every color imaginable and make this life we live possible. Each has a unique role. I know many of you are grimacing right now saying ‘no thanks’, and wishing they hadn’t returned. But it is all in perspective.

As you know, I love to photograph insects. There are those that arrive with a flourish, like a butterfly and getting a quick shot is easy. Others appear like a spec of dirt on a leaf and unless you zoom in you don’t’ realize they are living beings. Yet to really get to know any of them takes patience.

A friend saw her first butterfly recently and wanted to get a picture. She told me it let her get very close and wasn’t afraid. Yes!! When approached with an energy of curiosity and kindness, most will stay or keep returning. The beginning of a relationship. A connection.

Even the tiniest ones when I get soooo close have faces, with eyes, mouths, antennae that will all turn my way as I steady my phone inches away. I watch them chew, wipe their mouths, reach with a leg and even in their most intimate of activities. Sorry!

 

What has developed over the years of getting close to bugs is a deeper sense of compassion. An understanding that anytime I purposely step on or squash one…..especially when it is out in it’s own home, I am extinguishing a life. Regardless of how small.

I was reminded this week of ‘Mercy’ by Rudy Francisco.

She asks me to kill the spider.
Instead, I get the most peaceful weapons I can find.

I take a cup and a napkin.
I catch the spider, put it outside and allow it to walk away.

If I am ever caught in the wrong place at the wrong time,
just being alive and not bothering anyone,

I hope I am greeted with the same kind of mercy.

Do bugs ever have to be killed? Yes I suppose, but even a mindful pause to consider options opens a door to mercy.

Hello beetle,
SARAH