A Conversation With The Bees

Verdi’s Il Trovatore, trots through the air in heat waves as we work on Isadora today. Autumn blew us a kiss yesterday with beautiful breezed and cool temperatures, but her smoldering older sister, Summer, shoved her aside for one last curtain call! We make the most of each day in reconstructing the Vardo, no matter the weather.

Today is the day the replacement glass goes in the mollicroft! Since the first moment the old roof came off this has been our ambition. Previously I posted about our trip to the KOG, and finally, this is the moment of GLORY! But with the end of the season approaching we are not the only ones making busy.

Blue, whom many call Honey, has a special relationship with the bees. We kept them at the old homestead before travel became our way of life. Today they are particularly curious. I heard him mumbling and I asked what he said. “Oh nothing, just talking to the bees. They tell me they are liking the garnet glass.” He has a quiet smile and I know the work today will flow like warm honey. I remind him to tell the bees we will be traveling again soon…

CURIOSITIES

Telling The Bees

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Telling the bees is a traditional European custom in which bees would be told of important events in their keeper’s lives, such as births, marriages, or departures and returns in the household. If the custom was omitted or forgotten and the bees were not “put into mourning” then it was believed a penalty would be paid, such as the bees leaving their hive, stopping the production of honey, or dying. The custom is widely known in England, but has also been recorded in Ireland, Wales, Germany, Netherlands, France, Switzerland, Bohemia, and the United States. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telling_the_bees