Sunday, April 25, 2010

Purpose~

A Sweet cure~

"Because there is so little water in honey, microorganisms that encounter honey die as the water in them is removed by osmosis. In addition, as honey is diluted with water, a chemical reaction between glucose, water, and oxygen produces small amounts of hydrogen peroxide and gluconic acid. The slow release of hydrogen peroxide makes honey a mild antiseptic. The acidity of honey also reduces the number of organisms that can live in it. "

The other morning I was watching my bees, as I usually do for a little while everyday, and I observed several of them removing a dead comerade from the hive.   Three or four of them rolled and wiggled the deceased out to the front of the hive, and two of them (somehow) carried her body to the ground.  One bee remained with the body of the dead bee, feeling her and walking over her...performing a last rites of one sort or another(?), and then she returned to the hive.   I imagine this is something that happens quite often, due to the short life span of my little buzzing neighbors.  (I wouldn't exactly call them "friends", nor should I say they are "mine"...because bees belong to no-one but their Queen.)

Worker Bees die about every 21 to 30 days, however, this is the same anount of time (21 days) it takes for incubation.  Worker bees are all female and do all of the work in the hive.  The Drones are male and only live to mate with a Queen, and he dies soon after. 

A honey bee has a single purpose in life:  To reproduce the colony.   Everything they do, from gathering nectar and pollen, making honey, building honey comb, to laying eggs, and removing their dead...it's all for the survial of the next generation.

Is this the purose of all lesser, or non domesticated, creatures?

I use the term "non domesticated" because I was thinking of my cats, who are both fixed, and care nothing for creating a new generation of themselves.  They only want their favorite food and to be petted...and to sleep in a comfy spot on my deck chair.
However, I have seen my cats chase bugs and butterflies for sport.  Obviously they aren't hungry- they are having fun.   The same can be said of dogs, dolphins, horses, and even bears.   Though I hardly consider a bear to be a creature that can be domesticated.

I guess this train of thought comes from my own inner longing of wanting to be sure I've found my purpose, and that I am pursuing it.   I think humans generally have more than one purpose.   I think our purpose, or callings, change over time.   I know they do.   My 20's and 30's were spent caring for my children.  My 40's are very different.  At 30, with a 6 and 4 yr old, I could scarcely imagine being away from my family for a weekend, much less a week or a month.   At 40- (and beyond, I hope) this is not out of the question, and is at times a wonderful reality.

All that being said though, this morning, as I marveled at the honey bees in my back yard, I felt a little twinge of longing...
Of longing to know my purpose before it unfolds on the horizion.  Of seeing the productivity of bees, and the lounging of my cats, and knowing I was somewhere in between those 2 lifestyles.    Recognizing the beauty of my life and being thankful for what I have, yet feeling certain there is much more for me to do.

Torrential

It's a problem when I have a back log of things to purge out.   

It's an indication of my resources being used up for things like cooking, cleaning, laundry, teen-age taxi driving, party planner, Dr. appt appointee for mom, - oh...and not to mention the garden and bee-keeping.

So what?  I have a buzzy life.

However, I'm haunted by something I read years ago called, "The Tyranny of the Urgent".   This phenomenon is certainly the plague of mothers, but I suppose it's the bane of men's existence too? 
I don't know. 

There are things I know my husband wants to do but is tied down by work.  On the other hand, I see him make time for things in his life which are important and refusing to be snagged by trivial things like fixing the toilet seat (which has been wobbling for 2 weeks, I fixed it today), or tightening the handle of the oven (I asked last week, I adjusted it last night), or any number of minor (yet irritating) repairs around the house.
I suppose though, given he's had a medical issue that needed attention 6 months ago and just saw the Dr. last week about it, if he won't make time to repair himself, the house has got to come somewhere near the end of his mental list.   

The tyranny of the urgent simply means we forgo the "important" for what's pressing on us at the moment.
I imagine Doctors and Nurses in the Emergency room  have mastered this skill when assessing a patient who needs critical care.   Someone with a skull fracture and a broken leg is going to be sent for a head CT before the leg is mended...despite the patient being in tremendous pain from the broken leg.   The head injury has to be dealt with first.  

I don't really want to compare my need to write with a head injury,
but it's not much off the mark. 

To Hell with the laundry for a little while longer-
Tonight...I write!

Sunday, April 18, 2010

Meant to Bee~

My hive :)


Inside the Hive~

This is just one of many things keeping me buzzzy this spring! 
I have my tomatoes planted, and one of my flower beds ready...next I'll plant
blueberry shrubs :)

I hope I get some honey this summer, but if I don't, it' ok.  This has been an amazing
learning experience so far!

 (Is Blogger changing things again???)

Hugs and love to all of you :)