The Bees

The Bees

The Bee Friend 1863-64 Hans Thoma

“The lovely flowers embarrass me.

They make me regret I am not a bee.”

– Emily Dickinson

The tiny bee plays a monumental part in making our lives possible. Without their pollination of both wild and cultivated crops, we would lose over a third of our food supply. A quote attributed to Albert Einstein says: “If the bee disappeared off the surface of the globe, then man would have only four years of life left. No more bees, no more pollination, no more plants, no more animals, no more man.” In the spiritual realm, bees have represented a bridge between the natural world and the afterlife, hence the tradition of “telling the bees” when important events (deaths, weddings, etc.) take place. This was common practice throughout European countries. It was believed that if the custom did not take place, the bees would go into mourning and leave the hive, become sick or quit producing honey.