Imagine the stifling existence of a worker bee caught in the mindless tedium of life: every day, he helps build the hive, forages, feeds the larvae, stores honey and pollen, and falls into an exhausted sleep. Then the next day…he does it all again. But what happens if that bee has a little curiosity and a lot of spiritual yearning? You get the basis for this clever, inspirational allegory about living life to its fullest. Illustrated by award-winning artist Laurie Barrows, To Bee or Not to Bee is the story of Buzz Bee’s search for God. On his journey to enlightenment, Buzz is forced to negotiate a slew of unexpected twists and turns—always before he feels ready to handle them. But these hardships are exactly what teach him life’s most valuable lessons. As his wisdom grows, Buzz becomes increasingly aware that the only way out is in, and that life is a journey from “I” to “we.” What he ends up finding, in the end, is himself. Peppered with aphorisms and laced with wit and humor, this charming tale reminds us that life is too important to be taken so seriously.
John Penberthy was born with an insatiable curiosity which has made him an ardent student of Life and Spirit. His first conscious memory is that of beeing stung by a bee at age one. He grew up in south Florida, earned an MBA and spent a decade doing market and economic research consulting throughout the Rocky Mountain region. Following a period of intensive spiritual exploration, John coordinated a vitamin A fortification (blindness prevention) project for Helen Keller International in Indonesia and later managed the Cache River Bioreserve for The Nature Conservancy. His striving to see the Divine in all things led him to write To Bee or Not to Bee, which came to him in a meditation. John lives in Boulder, Colorado with his wife and daughter.