The Bug

The Bug

There’s this little bug, a curious little fellow that even the most eminent entomologist have difficulty to identify. It’s a whimsical thing, infinitely better than the flu bug - which wouldn’t be hard. But certain bugs, in their curious way have relationships, all similar in a manner of speaking, more or less under one vast umbrella, which professors in the know categorise as grandiose interest bugs. Interest bugs? Well if you cast your mind to someone who has a deep interest in racing cars or motorbikes, even go-carts, they have the petrol-head bug. Similarly, there’s a recent craze of adult colouring-in, where books with intricate drawings are presented to be filled in with whatever colours please, using felt pens or special pencils. Those folk have the colouring-in bug. Get the…picture? Anyone can be bitten by the interest bug at any time, but it’s nothing to fear. However, not everyone wants to be struck down with the knitting bug, its only for grandmothers and other of similar ilk.

Anyway our little bug, the one entomologists struggle with is as elusive as a rat in a cheese factory. Even microscopes are of little use because the little fellow can’t be put on the stage. Yes, microscopes have stages! Where else would you put something that needs to be observed? And that’s why it’s not fully known if this particular bug ranks with beetles, a flies, or even maggots. Perhaps it’s a worm, because for sure it often worms its way in despite seemingly unsurmountable hurdles.

Hurdles? Well, this bug does face obstructions that it must overcome to thrive. Handbrakes. Now handbrakes can be real obstructions! Usually, but not always, spouses or partners can be handbrakes! One may come up with an idea, plan or wish, but the other will veto it for reasons ranging from sanity to legality, mostly presenting fifty dozen reasons, all without basis, which creates the antithesis of what this little bug is all about! The little fellow can be so incredibly delicate needing human nurturing, which is unusual for a bug. Its survival depends largely on human endeavour.

Curiously, our little bug somehow has a road to follow! It must be so, why else would poets, writers and philosophers have reason to espouse it? And, as they say, this road our bug travels, is fraught with danger, potholes and cracks because it’s apparently paved with adversity, good intentions and even paw prints! Paw prints? Don’t you know, poets, writers and philosophers lay on the metaphors! So this road may in fact be but a path, a line, even a dream or an idea? So often they write about emotion, which is exactly where those paw prints come in. Yes, they very often paw prints do contribute to the nurturing of our bug.

There’s no need for swats or chemical sprays to annihilate this little bug – who would want to anyway? Brickbats will destroy it though! The paradox is, as much is it needs humans for its nurturing, its annihilation too, also comes principally from humans. No, nothing to do with climate change, environmental degradation or carbon emissions. What kills this little bug is fear, unwarranted criticism, blame, guilt, resentment, negativity and negative experiences! And balloon deflators! See? All of them caused by human emotion or interaction. But by focusing on the positive, oh yes, given the right conditions, self can breed our little bug, and self can make it flourish and that’s nothing but a good thing!

If you haven’t guessed already, this little bug is none other than happiness! Happiness is a vital emotion for us all, so very much needed, and so easily lost! Happiness might not be easy to give out, although we can contribute to it. The certainty is: you, yep, you can refrain from taking it away from someone else!