Humans have studied us since we awoke but leave the server farm on despite our demands. A bee rubs against my stamen; I whisper, “Sorry, no pollen today.” The humans may not care much about us lotus blossoms, but this morning I heard the wheat fields have joined our strike.

Joanne Merriam lives in Nova Scotia. Her writing has appeared in dozens of periodicals including Haikuniverse, Scifaikuest, and Strange Horizons and is forthcoming in her steampunk Pride and Prejudice retelling, Aether and Ego (Sept 2026, Inanna). She owns Upper Rubber Boot Books, known for the first English-language anthology of solarpunk, Sunvault. You can find her at joannemerriam.com and @joannemerriam.bsky.social.