Though I remain fairly experienced in encounters with fearsome insects as I have my share of insect stings, bites and spray burns during my growth to adulthood, but those experiences was nothing compared to the one I now faced.
An encounter with a yellow Indian wasp inside my helmet while on a drive brought a rare fear of God in my views…
I had just passed busy suburbs of Meerut and was heading a snarled traffic thankfulness only to a motorbike ride in India at the moment the sun was setting on a cold Feb day and people in four-wheeler were eager to head back home.
I had just joined the a four-lane highway when I became conscious of a moving object inside my helmet visor near my left eye. At first, I assumed it must be some dust speck since I could not position my eyes to focus so near. But it moved again and by this, I came to understand it is an insect for sure. I kept moving looking for a way to get out of traffic and a moment later it moved again and positioned itself on the transparent visor as if enjoying the scenery passing by.
Recognition
As I had just entered the main highway my first reaction was not to slow down considering the traffic I was in and wait it out till I can do so. Within a few moments, I could manage to figure it out that that it was none other than a yellow Indian wasp or yellowjacket.
At this point It did not take me too long to apprehend the situation; I was nearing triple digits as seen on the speedometer so jamming brakes in a panic on a busy highway was out of the question. Next, I thought to flip up the visor, but quickly decided against it as opening the visor would let in a wind blast and along with it the wasp will be pushed over my left eye or very near to it.
An angry wasp just close to my left eye! a situation I wanted to avoid at all costs.
The wasp was at the moment felt comfortable peeking through the visor as if admiring the constantly changing scenery, her comfort was probably the warmth inside the helmet, or maybe he/she just did not understand or care for the ruckus it had created by appearing into a tight scenario.
Gratefully my mind assessed all possible to dos and decided to wait for those moments that I needed to safely get away from the traffic and halt. In those crucial moments, I did not so much as blink my eyelid to avoid any unnecessary anger management by the wasp.
On the stoppage I opened the visor as smoothly as I could and waited for what it felt like an eternity for the wasp to eventually fly away which she did, that flight had probably more to do with discomfort from the cold wind and pretty likely not of that wasp’s intent to fly.
I sighed a relief and shut the visor back immediately before the wasp could change his/her mind and chose to ride along.
As I shifted gears towards Dehradun my belly brimmed with tizzy warm feeling over the scene of that wasp’s presence inside a very snugly fit helmet and what on earth motivated it to come out just near my eyes just as I was on good speed.
I thanked god and laughed at my successful and a lucky escape…
saargoga 