A Small Observation, a Grand Discovery

I watched an ant today. Just one.

Carrying something far too big, weaving through cracks in the earth like it had a map tucked beneath its shell. And I thought how small it looked . How easy it would be to miss it entirely.

But when we stop and really pay attention, we know these tiny lives shape the world beneath our feet. Insects pollinate, decompose, build systems of connection and renewal. They don’t ask for recognition. They simply get on with it.

And isn’t that us too, in the grand scheme of things? Just specks in a vast universe. Small. Brief. But not insignificant. Like the ant, our actions ripple. Our choices matter.

We aren’t the owners of this place. We’re just passing through — and we have a responsibility to tread lightly, to care deeply, and to honour the wild work that came before us.

The Earth doesn’t need our dominance. It needs our respect.

Isn’t nature fascinating. Look carefully, is this a bee collecting nectar from the sunflower or a wasp foraging for an ant, to take back to the nest for the larvae to feed on?

A butterfly with orange, black, and blue eye pattern wings perched on small white flowers surrounded by green leaves.

A colorful caterpillar with orange and black markings and white spots, covered in bristles, resting on a green leaf.

One of my favourite places to visit is Hellens Manor in Much Marcle, Herefordshire

An abundant bed of lavender in the garden buzzing with bees and other pollinators.

Love your dandelions !

A bee on a bright yellow dandelion flower in a grassy field.

A hedge covered with dozens of spider webs stretching across the top of the hedge.

Holly bushes covered in spider webs with some red berries.