A Kamikaze Moment

I arrived home late this afternoon. Spent the bulk of the day moving stuff out of the old Rivendell facility in Boulder. I was tired, but there was still time--and the will--to do some things around the house and yard.

This time of the year I've learned to keep a watchful eye on the grapes we have ripening along our driveway's fence. I water them daily and monitor their growth pretty closely. Right now they've got some ugly little Ash trees invading their space, and I'm going to sneak up on those little "suckers" to root them out.

I know the local deer population will soon be eying my grapes too. The fragrance of the maturing grapes will soon tempt the herd into our yard to sample them. The handsome freeloaders will quickly make a mess of the grapes, so vigilance is a must for the next six weeks or so.

In the meantime...

I grabbed my little arbor saw and headed for the front yard to cut out those little suckers. Kneeling down I had to crawl under the vines. "Wow, lots of grapes down here." Pushing the vines and several clumps of grapes aside I located the base of one sapling and quickly sawed through it. But I had to yank at a bit to pull it free, up, and out of the vines and grasses at the base of the fence. "Ugh, what was that. Surprise, surprise, this little sapling has little friends!"

Ouch! Yipe! Look out! What's that on my neck, biting my arm, in my shirt, and on my back? It's Beeeeeeezzzzz.....'n lots of them! My first thought, "They're protecting these little trees!" Then, my first emotional response was frustration--and anger--at the little bug biting me in the back. "Hmmm, protecting these little trees--the arrogance in that 'teamwork!'" But then, and very quickly, my thoughts and actions changed. It was about self-preservation now; "TEAMWORK" indeed! My angry strength was no match for the Kamikaze behavior of these little yellow soldiers.

Swatting and smarting (and talking to myself a bit) I cautiously walked back to the house...wary and clearly beaten. But, in the words of another formidable foe, albeit a mythical one, "I'll be baaack" to resume this fight another day...soon. For sure I can't have those little warriors waiting there when it comes time to pick the grapes.

I think maybe there's a message in this little late afternoon cameo...maybe you can tell me what it is?

Dick