Behind the Words: "The Fat Little Bee."
Karen Thatcher
…I had never even BEEN to a poetry slam, let alone been IN one…
At the end of February (just before lockdown happened….! You, know, when you could hug your friends and family, and enjoy life, mask-free… Do you remember it?!) I did something very out of my comfort-zone. My friend Francesca- always full of courage and creativity, talked me into taking part in the Margate Bookie Poetry Slam…
Well… I had never even BEEN to a poetry slam, let alone been IN one. The entire extent of my Poetry Slam knowledge was from watching 22 Jump Street…! I had no idea what to expect. All I knew was, I needed to write a piece of spoken word, under 2 minutes long and perform it………… so… I did. I wrote this piece especially for that competition (which I actually came in 3rd place- not bad for my first go, surround by seasoned slammers!) and was due to be cracking it out at The Write House open mic a few weeks later, but a little thing called pneumonia, got in the way. So I thought this would be a great time to share it a fresh with you now, a few months on.
This piece “The Fat Little Bee” was actually written as it begins…pondering outside. I love flying my kite, it’s such a soothing past time. I’ll often take myself off to the beach or up on a hill and just fly my kite and clear my head. And so in dribs and drabs the words came from there.
Bees have become a slight fascination of mine in the past few years, as i’ve learned more about their intricate beauty, but the NECESSITY of the bee in nature. They are incredible creatures, and when I found out that they entirely defy gravity with their wing-to-body ratio, well it was a no brainer.
You can take the words at face value, or you can look a bit deeper. Either way, I hope you get something great from the words.
And if you love a bee as much as I do, pop on over to my shop and stock up on “Bee Yourself” cards and badges!
