A  Fist Full of Bees

(for Bob)

The bumble bees were  furry
like your favourite cat

You caught them one by one
stroked  them gently
and held them in your tiny fist.

Their whirring wings
tickled your skin
as they buzzed.

When your mother opened your  fist
the bees escaped
and you cried

though you had not been  stung.

Juliet Wilson is an adult education tutor and conservation volunteer based in Edinburgh. She blogs at Crafty Green Poet  and edits the online poetry journal Bolts of Silk. Her poetry chapbook Unthinkable Skies was published in 2010.