Learning Hope & Resilience from the Bees
It has been a humbling week at the Arthouse Apiary. As a second year beekeeper, I know well enough to know how little I know. And yet, I have to now realize and admit that I have had some rose-colored notions about what it takes to really show up for those bees- not too much, not too little, and be sure to listen more than assume.
I think we have all had the experience of presuming that just because we show up with positive intent, that we will have positive impact. Or that our actions are even necessary. And yet, the glaring issues may be staring us in the face and we are blind to our part in it. Humbling! And hopefully we get the message eventually.
The bees teach me so much. Even when I have not been listening properly.
After a year of fastidiously checking on the hives about once a week, yet finding myself with the collateral damage of a few dead bees due to my inquiry, I decided to give the bees a bit more space this year hoping to preserve a few bee lives. But as it turns out, the queens this year were not as strong as last year and I found my hives either queenless or with a queen in decline. There are a few more chaotic things going on due to the weaker hives and I am reassessing and working to remedy. Obviously, I have to begin with figuring out if the shifts I made in the hives this year have had a negative impact. I’ve been checking in with the local bee org and googling like crazy and more than anything realizing that I am just a beekeeper, and we all make mistakes and no matter how hard we try we may not always succeed.
Yesterday, I installed new queens and make lists of all of the things I need to tend to to improve the hives. I was invigorated yet a little low, until i realized that there was this sweet lil worker bee hanging out on my sleeve. I just let everything rest and spent a good ten/fifteen minutes with her before relocating her on some milkweed. Yeah, those rose colored glasses went right back on my face and my heart was soothed. But isn’t that how life goes? We trip and stumble and get ourselves back up, and hopefully there is someone/thing there to witness us and just be(e) with us for a moment to help us reground and reconnect.
xoxoMs.AnnaLee
My lil bee bud
