One unexpected day, Leonora Kruger ‘bee-friended’ a tired and flightless carpenter bee. Little did she know that her new house guest (later named Maybee) would quickly become a dear friend!
McGregor, South Africa (18 December 2024) — Unexpected friendships happen all the time. People who have nothing in common can find themselves forming unbreakable bonds. A father and the cat he didn’t want at first become life-long companions. One Leonora Kruger and a carpenter bee found themselves thick as thieves after an unforeseen but fortunate turn of events.
Leonora tells Good Things Guy that she didn’t expect the bee to be in her life for as long as she was.
It all started when she found the tired and flightless bee in need of some rest—not unusual when the McGregor heat is in full swing.
“Usually they just need a bit of rest and then fly off soon after,” she shared. But, Leonora soon realised that this bee wasn’t going anywhere.
“I thought that she was not going to make it. But then the most extraordinary thing happened: the days just went by—and she lived with us for 47 days (six and a half weeks).”
Leonora decided her new friend and house guest needed a name, and affectionately called her Maybee.
In their weeks together, little Maybee spent time in flower pots, enjoying the start of spring with her new companion, posing for photoshoots for her growing fanbase on social media and sleeping peacefully without worry.
Leonora took the utmost care of her carpenter bee and watched as her consideration for the little things grew.
“In the evenings she slept under a flower stem in a flowerpot by the kitchen window. In the day I moved her between flowerpots outside. She lived mostly off pride of madeira flowers that were in season at the time—it’s like a mielie for bees!” Leonora reflects.
Near the end of Maybee’s life, she had become quite the social butterfly who grew fond of sitting on Leonora’s shirt as her friend went about her day. If the shirt wasn’t ideal, Maybee had no problem sitting in a flowerbed near Leonora, simply happy to be nearby.
Of course, like all good friends, the two had their hiccups.
One particular hiccup came on a day when, weeks in, Leonora attempted to pick Maybee up. While she handled the bee often, this day saw some poor timing involved on account of Maybee’s beauty sleep—something any irritable napper can relate to.
“I think she was having a Sunday nap when I tried to pick her up and got a fright,” Leonora recalls. “Stings like mad! But good for her, after all she is a bee!”
For the curious, unlike other bee species, female carpenter bees do not die after they sting. And, that was the last time Maybee stung Leonora, as well as the last time Leonora risked waking a sleepy pal.
The carpenter bee impacted a lot of other people who perhaps hadn’t had the chance to bond with a life most are so quick to squat away.
“For those who were lucky to meet her, she gave the best little high fives! Maybee also had a great sense of humour. She played dead three times in her last week, and then would wiggle and giggle when I picked her up.”
But, little bees can’t live forever.
“The time came and she died (for reals this time), hopefully peacefully in her flowerpot while I was out on an afternoon,” her friend shared with a sad heart.
However, for Leonora, Maybee’s time with her is precious in ways even death can’t conquer.
“I am very grateful to have had such a privileged encounter. Maybee [shed] light on the theme of Devotion for me. She died, yes, and it was unbearably sad. Yet, she ignited a new flow of what I choose to devote myself to in my daily life.”
After Maybee was buried, another carpenter bee found itself tired on the grass and in need of a break. Maybee’s flowerpot quickly became a resting place that gave the new bee enough fuel to fly off the next day!
Yes, there’s certainly something to be said about the lessons we can learn from unexpected friendships. We learn how to adapt. How can we be more considerate of things that may never have crossed our minds before? How to forgive when the sting hurts most, and how to use all they’ve taught us to make space for new friendships to come.
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What are the key lessons we can learn from befriending a carpenter bee?