Life has a funny way of teaching lessons when we least expect it. Sometimes wisdom doesn’t come from books, sermons, or long conversations it comes from observing behavior. Real behavior. Raw behavior. The kind that doesn’t hide behind excuses or politeness. And lately, I’ve learned that some of the clearest lessons about human nature come from animals.
Here’s what sparked this realization.
Recently, I had to part ways with someone I genuinely considered a friend. And being where I am now, you hear everything. Stories, rumors, half-truths, straight-up lies you name it. But I’ve always been the type to take people at face value. Call me trusting. Call me naive if you want. That’s just who Phoenix is. I believe what people show me until they show me otherwise.
And when you fumble my trust? You get two options.
You can feel my wrath…
or we can part ways peacefully.
Trust me, empresses peace is always the better option.
What really gets under my skin, though, isn’t the betrayal itself. It’s the confusion act afterward. That wide eyed “I don’t understand why you stopped talking to me” performance. Like, really? You’re going to insult my intelligence on top of everything else? That’s when the issue becomes less about what happened and more about what kind of person you’re choosing to be.
That situation got my wheels turning, and it brought me back to a phrase we’ve all heard:
“Don’t bite the hand that feeds you.”
Sounds simple, right? But like most simple sayings, it carries layers. And when you peel those layers back, you start seeing patterns patterns that show up in animals first, and humans second.
So let’s talk about it.
The Scorpion: Honest About Their Sting and Human Nature
Let’s start with my personal favorite the scorpion.
Scorpions are territorial. Defensive. They don’t trust easily, and they don’t pretend to. They’re not out here trying to be everyone’s friend. They’re saying, loud and clear, “This is who I am.”
And here’s the part people miss: a scorpion in its natural habitat, minding its business, is actually less likely to attack you as long as you don’t mess with it. I said less likely, not “won’t.” So please don’t take this as an invitation to go camping next to a scorpion family reunion in Arizona and blame me when you get stung.
But this is what I respect about scorpions: they’re honest.
They don’t lure you in.
They don’t fake vulnerability.
They don’t pretend to be harmless.
When a scorpion strikes, you know exactly why. You crossed a boundary. You stepped too close. You ignored a warning.
No manipulation. No confusion. No “I didn’t mean it like that.”
Just straight-up accountability.
The Serpent: Master of Deception & Human Nature
Now let’s talk about the serpent.
Biblically and symbolically, the serpent represents deception and that description is painfully accurate. A serpent doesn’t confront. It creeps. It watches. It waits. And when it strikes, it does so quietly, strategically, and often when you least expect it.
What makes serpent energy so dangerous isn’t just the bite it’s the betrayal.
Serpents are notorious for turning on the very hand that fed them. The person who showed up. The one who supported them when no one else would. The moment you’re no longer useful? They slither away or worse, they strike.
And for my fellow Scorpios out there (November Scorpios especially), once that mask slips, we don’t rage we detach. Stranger danger activates immediately.
Play that energy if you want to.
Learn About: Human Behavior Psychology
Caesar Junior and the Art of Relationships: Insights into Human Nature
Now let me break this down with a story.
Imagine you find an injured baby chimp. We’ll call him Caesar Junior. He’s weak, scared, and needs help. You take him in, nurse him back to health, feed him, protect him. Over time, a bond forms. Trust grows. Care is exchanged.
Monkeys share a significant amount of DNA with humans, which is why this analogy works so well.
In a healthy relationship, Caesar Junior doesn’t harm the person who saved his life. And the human let’s call him Steve respects Caesar’s nature and protects him from harm.
That’s mutual respect.
That’s loyalty.
That’s balance.
This is the opposite of serpent behavior.
When Caesar Junior Goes Serpent: Lessons in Human Nature
But here’s the twist.
What if Caesar Junior was never healing the way he claimed? What if he was pretending to be weak playing helpless while secretly gaining strength? What if the extra care, attention, and resources Steve gave him were being used not for gratitude… but for strategy?
Steve genuinely loves Caesar. He sees him as family. But Caesar? Caesar sees Steve as temporary.
When Caesar finally attacks, Steve is forced to make a hard decision not out of anger, but out of self-preservation. He doesn’t destroy Caesar. He doesn’t seek revenge. He simply places him where he belongs: a sanctuary. A distance. A boundary.
Because sometimes love means recognizing danger and responding with wisdom.
What This Teaches Us About People & Human Nature
Here’s the truth, empresses: some people cannot tell the difference between love and threat.
When someone bites the hand that feeds them, that nurtures them, that believes in them it’s not because you did too much. It’s because they’re operating from survival, not sincerity.
Scorpions are honest.
Serpents are strategic.
Both can hurt you but only one warns you first.
Why the Serpent’s Bite Hurts More
The serpent’s bite hurts more because you didn’t see it coming. You trusted. You relaxed. You believed.
But here’s the part people forget: once a serpent reveals itself, it loses its power. You can’t be deceived twice the same way.
After that?
“Oops. Didn’t know you were there.”
Stop sneaking.
The Empress Lesson
Here’s what I want you to take from this:
Not everyone who comes into your life wounded is there with pure intentions. Some are genuine Caesar Juniors grateful, loyal, protective of the love they receive. Others are serpents in borrowed skins, waiting for the right moment to strike.
Compassion does not require self-sacrifice.
Kindness does not require blindness.
Love does not require access.
You can love people from a distance.
You can help without overextending.
You can be generous and still be wise.
Your heart is sacred. Guard it not with fear, but with discernment.
Because sometimes the people who need the most help are also the ones most capable of harm. That doesn’t mean you stop helping it means you get better at recognizing patterns.
Learn the difference between a scorpion and a serpent.
One warns you.
The other pretends.
