The Hornet
7:43
Added: 1 year ago
From: LeonardLew
Views: 9,940
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  • It's always good to see people with great emotional capacity. Sadly, most humans find it silly to have empathy for something as seemingly insignificant as a hornet -- but they obviously haven't had such and experience.  I like how M. Gandhi concisely stated: "The good man is the friend of all living things."

    :)

  • This is beautiful. Whenever I see spiders in my room, I can never squish them; I always try to put them outside instead, even though my family teases me about it. About a year ago, I found a really tiny one crawling about on my desk, and thinking I was being childish by not killing it, I took a tissue and tried to pick it up to squish it. I couldn't grab hold of it, and started crying as I realized that I was willingly going to take the life out of another animal. I eventually let it outside.

  • Wow, you saved that Hornet's life... Good on you man (;

  • As ridiculous as this may sound, you just made me cry...

  • @lolitakairi I admire your capability for being touched in this way by something as removed as a Youtube-video.

    Thank you for subscribing.

  • Very great message. Good video edition too.

    Best Regards!

  • I watched your video and was so intrigued by your gentle clear articulation that I was speechless ...I clicked to make a comment and found a remarkable number of really sincere messages ...I am stunned at the content ...your video has inspired so many to express genuine appreciation

    thank-you for having the courage to share your thoughts

    L♥vely to see the hornet ingesting the honey and subsequently flying away

  • awwww poor hornet! Kudos for helping her though :D I had a simular exsperience with a midget fly, not joking, I picked it up like really delicately because it was struggleing in the rain. And it sort of sat in my hand, and it was so weird because I really felt the need to protect this tiny fly that most people would just squish. But it was nice in a way, its weird when you have like almost an intermate moment with something as alien to us as an insect.....

  • I usually save the wasps that fall into my pool. It's feels good to see them dry in the sun and take off.

  • I love helping animals, and it almost sounds like you had a moment of enlightenment not unlike Buddha himself, but you have to realize that hornets are SAVAGE bee killers. They massacre entire bee hides and feed on their larvae. They kill all other kinds of insects. They are the apex and most EVIL (if it can be applied to an insect) animals of the insect world.

    So, while I appreciate and admire your compassion, you must always exercise compassion with temperance.

  • Hey man i dont normally comment on youtube videos but i want to tell you that I think this video was great. I mean you opened your soul to the internet basicly and that takes courage. The kind of courage that we all need to have to change the world.

    One love

  • Thank you for sharing this story. Truly.

  • most people would have stepped on the hornet, or walked away/ignored it. i think it really says something about you that you paused, that you really took the chance to examine what the hornet was doing... i guess so many people are so busy that they forget to look around them and to see what is there, and i guess that's what i found so refreshing about this video. sometimes it's nice to stop the bustles of life, and just consider how we are living it.

    -kaight

  • That was simply amazing.

  • Finally I found the time to watch it attentively. And even though my philosophical world view does not really apply to this kind of story and storytelling I can't help but find it quite impressive. The symbolism and the minimalistic execution (I don't really know if these words work in English) fascinates me somehow. And as Thekla I like this video for not being hyperactive.

  • @socnow Thank you. It doesn't really coincide with my world view too, but for me this wasn't really an intellectual but an emotional experience. Obviously these do have some crossover, but it was more about feeling something to me unknown up to that point.

    Sorry for the late answer, since youtube decided to put the inbox at the bottom of the page I don't really notice when somebody leaves a comment -.-

  • This reminded me of the movie American Beauty, in which the character Ricky Fitts films an entire sequence of a platic bag flowing in the wind because it affected him so much and it was beautiful, so much so that he gets glassy eyed. Both stories reminded me how much meaning and there is in simple events, and how they can greatly impact someone. It takes a special person to have been touched by nature so profoundly that it affects themselves, and form reading the comments, others too. Beautiful.

  • Darling, my heart goes out to you. You took a tragically beautiful moment in nature, and shared its profound depth with the rest of us... Tears come to my eyes as you tell your story. You made my day sweetheart, thank you *hug*

  • This was so beautiful. I don't know how to thank you for sharing this with the world.

    It's so beautiful that you stopped and took the time to notice the hornet, and then took the time to film her and then kept trying to help her...that's a pretty amazing thing. And you're a great storyteller. Gorgeous.

  • great vid.

    full of emotion and meaning

  • Thanks for letting us share in this moment in some small way. Very moving.

  • Consider this shared on my facebook!

    I'm glad you had this moment. I got to have mine at 18.

  • What a beautiful story and you are a very eloquent in expressing it, that is such a rare thing, especially at 21!

  • @GLbigthumb Thank you, I'm glad you liked it.

  • I really liked that.

  • I experienced something similar today. I was standing at the bus station and there was a wasp crawling on the floor. An old woman said to me that I should step on the wasp so it can't hurt anyone who is allergic to wasps. I told her I won't do that since it's a creature who's allowed to live and that I don't think that's a good reason for killing something. I was so shocked that people just kill something without about whether this is" right or wrong" Greets from Germany btw, your accent.... (;

  • thats amazing. I would have given up on her...

    I really think what you did was beautiful

    and what you took from it was good

  • @LeonardLew I've been trying to make up for it though, and I kinda felt that through your video too. I really loved the way you spoke in this video, the way you formed your thoughts are shared them seemed so perfect to me, I could really relate, I felt.

  • @LeonardLew Thanks for your video, I really, really liked it. You told it in such a nice way, I loved it. I'm going to keep this bookmarked so I can remind myself about this experience for you. Sometimes I feel that I missed out on some things when I was younger, and it makes me kind of sad.

  • Your voice is god.

  • @seboskii Thank... you?

  • Great vid- is that a reflection (in the honey) of the hornet flying away at the end? I think it is; very cool...

  • @konnan Yes it is.

  • I was absolutely spellbound by this video.

    Greetings to what I suspect is a very old soul in a young man's body. :-)

  • @nameofthepen Sometimes I feel like that, I'm glad it got to you.

  • am i the only one who freaked the duck out when the bee went into fully flared attack mode?

  • Thank you for this video. It was beautiful and touching. How wonderful that you received this gift. Maybe the medicine might have been a blessing in disguise? Many people go through life just as numb as you say you felt with the medicine, but they never have anything to compare it with. The fact that you stopped taking it probably gave you that very intense feeling of newness and you were able to experience it more fully. :-) Watching this made me so happy!

  • @soyinfinita Thank you. I don't know man, it's always hard to tell how life would have gone if something different would have happened... I think it does give me a somewhat unique perspective though, so that's definitely something to appreciate about it.

  • It takes a lot of guts to say stuff like that to a camera and to put it online for all the trolls to see. I am glad you did it, though. DFTBA. Seeing someone with such a strong sense of empathy is inspirational.

  • @jeandavidt64 Thank you, interestingly enough there are only a few trollcomments on here, which is something I didn't quite expect.

  • This is amazing.

  • holy shit, this is amazing.

  • Most people would have seen it as an insignificant, even hurtful little creature. It takes a kind heart to do what you did.

  • That was really beautiful.

  • Leo... Thank you so much for sharing this experience with us. It is not only meaningful but so very prolific and intimate! An extremely powerful tool to share with your fellow man! Blessings!

  • You saved a hornet's life! I would've run away from her, scared, and you actually gave her honey to eat... I thought that she was going to die, and that would be it. But you actually were able to save a living thing's life... You deserve some kind of award! :D

  • It's pretty annoying to see the standard comments saying, "Is he high?" or, "You're crazy man."

    A life changing experience like this should be applauded and we should all learn from this great young man. For some people all it takes is saving a hornet's life to reach enlightenment.

    Great video. Good man. Thanks a bunch.

  • @FishFromFortFack I'm actually very surprised with just how few of these comments are on here. I really like how the youtubes have taken to this video.

  • You say thanks for listening, I say thanks for sharing.

  • Thank you so much for this video. This was so beautiful. I think you are a wonderful person for doing this.

  • this is what the internet is for.

    not cats flushing toilets.

  • why did u put honey on a piece of paper, its thorn up bee vomit. give her a flower of something

  • Seriously man...yikes! Im one with the earth but this is just a lil out there..

  • what a great guy....I'm so glad he shared that with us.....

  • Is he high?

  • Woah I dont think ive had an experience like this but it gave me a great idea for a book

  • woah hes profound and hot -falls over-

  • A bird flew into my window a year ago. I was sitting in my living room when I saw the little black object smack the window, yes, I looked at the window right as it hit. I have found more than one dead bird outside my various windows I've owned over my life, but I had never been there when it happened before.

    I ran outside and found its contorted body on a lawn chair, but it was still breathing. I straitened its neck out and laid it down in a paper towel. About an hour later it flew away.

  • @Aeuwa Wow It's a great feeling isn't it?

  • real emotion is hard to come by...especially on the web.

    you are inspiring

    good job

  • this was beautiful Leo! thank you for sharing!

  • This is so beautiful. It made me think about all of the relationships I have with people. The way you described the hornet as never doing anything for herself really got me thinking...I wish I could be that selfless person. I've neglected a few important relationships in my life, and that needs to change. It's up to me to nurture those important relationships, like the honey you used here. Then they will be truly meaningful. Thank you for making me think about my own life in such a poignant way.

  • @rachjay4 It makes me so happy to have touched you in a way that made you think about your own life to that extend, thank you for watching.

  • this was beautiful Leo! thank you for sharing!

  • I wanted to cry so much after this, because I got a letter expressing concern that I might have HIV. After being a scared sitzpinkler,, I noticed these types of things as well. You're an amazing storyteller, and this story is definitely one worth sharing.

  • @XxharcoreamayaxX Thank you, I hope everything turns out alright for you!

  • I'm generally impressed by the way you have captured your emotions and changed them into words. Beautiful imagery, but such an honest, real, and open explanation of the importance this hornet had to you.

    I'm glad you've been able to have this experience. It is moving to hear another's perspective on such a matter.

  • This is an amazing video! Honest and touching and real. Great job. Hornets and I don't get along, but this video made me feel for them. Thanks for opening up my eyes.

  • I have had moments similar to that, except without the same degree of self awareness or eloquence. Even the filming captures the poignancy.

  • neil you look like a lesbian

  • Thank you! That really is the most beautiful thing I have seen in a long time. How can a 21 year old show such maturity, awareness, compassion and eloquence? Absolutely amazing.

  • Thanks Leo. I appreciate you! What a wonderful and candid video

  • i would have squashed her and ended the suffering....

  • This was such a lovely video. Completely unique and beautiful. What's weird is I had this site open in another tab before I started watching and forgot; the music in it just fit absolutely perfectly with the video: continuitygame . com So strange that I happened to have it open!

  • This movied me to tears. I've always felt very passionate to help -- whether it's helping people or animals, or in your case, insects. Thank you so much.

  • big deal

  • @song48 Yes it kinda was.

  • @LeonardLew but not really..

  • your sincerity is beautiful beyond words

  • Brilliantly moving. :) And the footage of the hornet was just amazing. x

  • Beautifully filmed :-) I really like that at the end you didn't move the camera to try to catch her movements, but we can see her (him, probably) fly away in the reflection in the honey, and hear the buzz of the wings. Great ;-)

    ~Trav

  • @sivartis I love this video, and totally like how he made such a connection through something in nature.

    I also appreciated, that he used the pronoun "her" because that was the smart thing to do seeing how most hornets/wasps are female. Workers of most wasp/hornet colonies die around this time of year with only the Queen surviving over winter. She may have warmed up on her own eventually, but sometimes just because we can do it on our own, doesn't mean we don't like/appreciate a helping hand.

  • @sivartis Thanks man, I really admire your work. The splitscreen-work in that one Two Guys in a shower episode was sick!

  • This is an absolutely beautiful story! Thank you so much for sharing, you've brightened my day.

  • I am not a spiritual or a poetic person, but this was beautiful.

  • This was so beautiful. Thank you so much for sharing.

  • This is a beautiful video. =) I've had experiences like this a few times, and every time I find myself wondering why I don't help people/animals/insects more. I was absolutely afraid of hornets; now, not so much. ^_^

  • Beautiful story. Thanks so much for sharing it.

  • Hornets are cold-blooded, she was moving slowly because it was cold outside. it probably happens every morning

  • You must be an amazing person. Thank you for sharing this!

  • And *this* is why youtube has the potential of being a wonderful new medium. This is a cross between a monlogue, an essay and a poem. Thank you.

  • @hippyfriend Wow thank you, I've never seen it like that...

  • This is a beautiful story. Thank you so much for sharing it with everybody. Isn't it funny how sometimes the smallest things can have the biggest impact on us?

  • I didnt understood why people help other people or donate to charities either until I got the chance to help myself.I always thought they just wanted to show the world how good they were.Thats why I didnt tell anyone when I myself felt the need to help, because I didnt wanted others to think I just did it to show people how good of a person I am.But then I realized that if you really want to help you have to share that you help with others to inspire them to do the same.Even if you dont want to.

  • Thankyou for telling your beautiful story. I once had an experience when a very big butterfly fell into a pool and couldn't get out because of the water on its wings. I wanted to help it but was too afraid, I'm not really sure why. I don't like bugs but butterflies have never really creeped me out before, it was a very big one though, with a furry body, I was afraid to touch it. So my 3 friends and I watched as another friend saved it. I was ashamed to have been too scared. Life lesson learned

  • You seem like a really amazing person. Very introspective and sensitive, which are noble characteristics. :)

  • That was beautiful :) I volunteer a lot and I've attempted to show people why it means so much to me to do it, and I think you've just given the best explanation imaginable. Thank you :)

    Oh, and your accent is exquisite.

  • it's really odd when one gets these odd moments of clarity. great video :)

  • I once pulled a small butterfly out of the community pool when I was a kid.  I watched as this soaked butterfly was dried by the sun, lifted its' wings and slowly came back to consciousness. Then it flew away. Awesome.

  • Thank you :)

  • Thx for this beautiful, insightful video. Made me sad and happy at the same time. =)

  • I'm so moved right now by this video. It's amazing how the small things- like saving a hornet's life (not to diminish to value of a life)- can completely affect our world view.

  • Thats Deep... Must have been hard to say. Well done :)

  • @NaiirZ Yes indeed it wasn't easy opening up like this, but I'm glad that I did it. Not only because of the reactions I've gotten here but also because of how relieved I felt after getting all of this off my chest.

  • Wow! That is one the most beautiful things I have ever saw and heard in my whole life. It's very rare to find people like you in this world of ignorance. You made a lot of people appreciate and value life, for it's best and worst. You made me cry. Thank you for sharing your experience.

  • @FxxxMyLife Thank you for being open to it.

  • This was beautiful. Thank you for sharing these pictures and thoughts with us. I must admit it brought tears to my eyes :)

  • Wow - you are awesome for sharing that with us. Thank you so much.

  • This is an important video. With an important message. Thank you.

  • I can only say, wow.

  • That was beautiful.

    I just want to give you a big hug.

  • Thank you so much for sharing this experience of yours. It makes me feel a lot better about the world.

  • LOL i would have killed it

  • wow... Amazing...

  • Stop making me cry. This was gorgeous.

    and now I need to go do something... I think I am going to start by learning more about Hornets.

  • @PrettyFascinated I'm glad that I invoked something inside of you <3

  • It isn't often that I comment on a Video. However this video is just so... I can't find the words to describe it. Thank you for posting such a beautiful video. I had the exact same experience with a Bee a few months ago. It lived. :)

  • @rhysallan96 Huh what a coincidence.

  • I'm here because of Hank's tweet. But wow! That was interesting. I'm glad I watched.

  • that was beautiful, thank you. LOVe

  • I'm glad you realized this is the way people feel about helping others. I hope you translate this charity given to a hornet to needy people around your neighborhood.

  • @Laramas I live in an area that is disgustingly rich =( It's one of those subburbs where - at least on the surface - you won't find a real human being in a 2 mile radius...

  • @LeonardLew: Trust me, there's always something you can do! Something as simple as volunteering at a local public library does more good than you know. They're always shorthanded and constantly being asked to operate on a lower and lower budget. Plus public libraries are one of the only places someone with no money can use for free. I guarantee you there are a lot of single mothers where you live who rely on the library for entertainment for their kids (books and free movie rentals). Good luck!

  • @LeonardLew: Trust me, there's always something you can do! Something as simple as volunteering at a local public library does more good than you know. They're always shorthanded and constantly being asked to operate on a lower and lower budget. Plus public libraries are one of the only places someone with no money can use for free. I guarantee you there are a lot of single mothers where you live who rely on the library for entertainment for their kids (books and free movie rentals). Good luck!

  • This was beautiful. I wish more people were this honest, not only on youtube, but in real life as well. I'm glad this experience affected you the way it did, cause this video totally reinforced all the hope I have for the world. Thanks.

  • Amazing video. I don't understand what you meant when you said a new experience was unexpected for a 21 year old, though. Your 20s are a time for having new experiences and changing your world views. Still, I'm glad you're using your time to do things like this. Thank you.

  • @fournya Well I thought that I made this step kinda late for the reasons I explained in the end of the video. Do you feel like this was a normal point of my life to make this step?

  • @LeonardLew I'm not sure what'd qualify as normal or not, but it's totally not unusual to have a new experience at 21. Life's just starting and all that.

  • I really wasn't expecting that ending. I have become cynical over the years. I wonder what my 'hornet' will be...

  • @CarylCake Whatever it may be, maybe the response you've seen here today will liberate you to tell us about it?

  • you're a really good person. if only there were more out there like you :)

  • Wow, that is a very touching story. Thank you for sharing it with us. Your videography skills and your ability to express yourself impressed me very profoundly. I felt so happy when the Hornet took the honey and was able to fly away.

  • @ohjoannabanana Thank you, that means a lot to me. I'm happy that people find it visually appealing since it is something I'm looking for in a video too.

  • HO wow! I was not expecting that voice when I saw that face! Beautiful video.

  • @Sik15 Thanks, but may I ask what you were expecting when you saw "that face"? ;)

  • @LeonardLew Well, I have no idea how old you are and from seeing your face for those first few seconds before you talked, I thought you were pretty young so I was expecting a higher pitched voice. I'm not meaning pre-pubescent, just not very deep.

  • Amazing and beautiful!

  • You are a beautiful human being. I'm glad you shared this experience.

  • @jjennruth I don't think that anyone has called me that, thank you.

  • I am saving this as a favorite. I think it's rare that a person has a realization of the beauty and fragility of life like this. and even more rare that they share that with the world.

  • @Lizmo21 Thank you, what a beautiful summary :)

  • Thank you for sharing this beautiful story.

  • Very touching :)

  • Got me thinking.

    I always thought that people helped other people to make themselves feel good: "What a great and selfish person I am!". Rich donate money to poor so that there will be someone no remember them when they are long gone. Which is fine by me - it's a win-win.

    But maybe there's something more. Something deeper. I... can't really describe it in words...

    Thank you for sharing.

  • @Zotov13 I kinda thought along those lines too, but that day my perspective changed.

  • Thank you for being honest and real. Hold on to that. It will take you far.

  • Wow. Amazing! (hank sent me)

  • wow, this is an amazing video.

  • Thanks for making such a profound vid...and thanks to the Vbros for sending people to it! DFTBA

  • This is one of the most beautiful video's I have seen on YouTube, thank you for sharing it.

    You ask if we've had a similar experience..

    It once happened that my cat had attacked a sparrow. The sparrow was just sort of lying on the ground after my cat was done with it, waiting to die. I picked it up and kept it warm until it passed away, because there was nothing I could do. Somehow that made a great impression on me, watching that little creature die in my hands.

    No happy ending, sorry.

  • @LisaSlytherin Well you did your best you were there for her and did what you could. I don't know what I would have felt if I would not have been able to save her...

  • Thanks for making such a profound vid...and thanks to the Vbros for sending people to it! DFTBA

  • more people should be like you, every life is worth saving, whether it be hornet or human, and most especially if that life has been spent helping others. I have such respect for you. <3

  • Touching, but omg that hornet is HUGE

  • Comment removed

  • wait it was hank

  • @BrandNewDenise It was both!

  • wow that was like art... john has a good eye for talent

  • @BrandNewDenise wow thank you!

  • This is such a powerful video. Thank you for sharing your story. :D

  • This is so beautiful.

  • this was so sensitive!

  • @CeConco *hands out man-card*

  • @LeonardLew haha

  • This was a beautiful video, made my day

  • You should pour honey on an dying bee/hornet. It saves them! :D

  • @AshHelpTutorials Good lesson to take away from this =D

  • This was beautiful, reminded me so much of Virginia Woolf's Death of the Moth. wonderful video essay.

  • Wow. This is the most raw and touching video I've seen on YouTube in a long time.

  • Can I hug you? ='(

  • @aquelaque3screve Obviously =) *opens arms for e-hug*