I Once Saw a Bee Drown in Honey
by Sierra H. Hixon

Runestone, volume 11

How can you drown
in your own creation? I once asked
myself this
question: when a bee vomits
a stream of flame, frothing out—
demanding someone’s needy
fangs suck sick raw gold straight
from the comb—how does it slide
back into its mouth, suffocating
us both with the heat? Pull
off the feelers, reach
in, take what you want
bear-hungry, unafraid,
because a bee only has one sting
loaded, after that, it dies, not
just because you disturbed it,
but because it defended itself.
As for drowning, sometimes
it’s the sweetest tidal wave
that drags you under, sometimes,
it’s your own substance that fills
your throat, stomachs, blood.