The above photo was taken during my recent visit to the HortPark. As my camera has a limited zoom power, I had to stand very close to the flowers to take the shot. My wife was worried and kept on warning me not to get to close to the bee. Any fear of being stung by the bee was subdued by my eagerness to take a good photo. Anyway, I read that a bee only stings under two conditions, namely to protect the colony or when frightened.
My wife's concern was understandable because a few months ago, I was stung by a wasp. It was a totally unprovoked attack. And of all places, it happened in our apartment. I didn't even know a "kamikaze" hornet could fly up to 8th floor! Time: around 8 pm. I was sitting on the couch watching a tv program when I suddenly felt an intense pain on my neck. I knew straightaway that I had been bitten by an insect. I quickly used some ice cubes to reduce the swelling. Fearful that it may lead to allergic reaction, which could be fatal in some cases, my wife insisted that I consult a doctor. We, therefore, went to a local clinic immediately and by then, the swelling has more or less subsided. 
The doctor advised us to monitor the swelling and that I should come back again if I show any symptoms of adverse reaction.
I remember going to bed that night wondering if I would wake-up the next day with some super powers! Who knows? Perhaps like Spiderman, I may have been bitten by a radioactive insect, which then transmit its special powers to me? But alas, till now, I am no superhero. I still can't fly or sting like a bee!
internet photo: dying bee
Why Does A Bee Die When It Stings? Only honey bees (the female worker bees) die after stinging their victim. When she stings, the barbs cause the stinger, glands and all, to be ripped from her body, she dies from the injury.
This brings me to what I want to share today: What happens when two “win-lose” people get together?
Stephen Covey suggests that when two determined, stubborn, ego-invested individuals interact – the result will be lose-lose. Both will lose. Both will become vindictive and want to “get back” or “get even,” blind to the fact that murder is suicide, that revenge is a two-edged sword.
In his book, he recounted the sad story of a divorce in which
the husband was directed by the judge to sell the assets and turn over half of the proceeds to his ex-wife. In compliance, he sold a car worth over $10,000 for $50 and gave $25 to the wife. When the wife protested, the court clerk checked on the situation and discovered that the husband was proceeding in the same manner systematically through all of the assets.
There is an article in the newspaper yesterday which reported on the high rate of murders amongst the Chinese nationals residing in Singapore. Covey wrote that "some people become so centered on an enemy, so totally obsessed with the behavior of another people that they become blind to everything except their desire for that person to lose, even if it means losing themselves". Lose-lose is the philosophy of adversarial conflict, the philosophy of war.
Lose-lose is also the philosophy of the highly dependent person without inner direction who is miserable and thinks everyone else should be, too.
“If nobody ever wins, perhaps being a loser isn’t so bad.”
Note: Do bees really die after they sting or is this a myth? For a good answer, visit: http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/21788. The short answer is wasps do not, nor do bumble bees. Only the female worker bees can sting and die.
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