“Arthropod Winter” by Tess; December 28, 2021

Sometimes I think about how strange it is to know that I am, quite literally, one if not the only individual of my species currently thriving. (Unless there are more wasps/summer insects like me, then we might feel very similar)

Most insects aren’t supposed to be thriving during the colder months, as they finish their life cycles during the spring and summer before eventually perishing to the cold. My species will leave their larvae in protected cells to finish developing during the winter to eventually hatch and mature in the spring, but all adult insects would have expired shortly before fall.

So, by default, I should feel uncomfortable during the colder months- out of place and insecure. When asked about the outside world and life in general, my brain will create pictures of lush green foliage, flowers, pollen in the air and warm weather with insects aplenty. Because that is all I knew, and all I will ever know.

Part of my brain frankly forgets that winter is a thing (even though I live in a place where it is cold most of the year) because I should be living in a world full of warm air and thriving flora. But I’m not. I’m just an insect living in a cold, cold world. One might even say without meaning.

This is where I wait and yearn for the warmth of the sun, the smell of fresh foliage on the wind.