They Arrived!!!!!

It was a full day with a field trip to the McNay Museum for Brett and an award's ceremony for my students that I helped to decorate, but did not attend.  I had a plan to pick up my bees at 5:30 pm.  I called the drop point and the bees had not arrived.  The delivery was happening in stages.  Floresville, New Braunfels, Spring Branch, Boerne, San Antonio, Bandera was the map of delivery.  The bees arrived at around 8pm.

Chloe and I frantically prepared their location and hauled fencing and concrete blocks.  I lost a pair of scissors somewhere along the way.  I searched everywhere for the zip ties I put "in a very safe spot where the kids couldn't find them" and did not find them.  I resorted to nailing fencing to the trees and praying the pony doesn't decide to use the fence as a scrubbing post.

We pick up our bees driven by my neighbor in her bright red fancy truck.  We suit up and carry the nuc box to the hive to insert the frames.  I cut the box open and begin loading my frames in to the hive.  The bees are silent.  I adjust the frames, five in all, carefully in the hive.  The sun is almost down and I have sweat dripping from my back on to the already wet spot on my jeans.  The humidity is not my friend today.  I work quickly, but cautiously.  My neighbor, Darla, is standing nearby helping to make sure I get all the parts put together correctly and talking me through the steps.  I look at the quiet bees and wonder if I am just lucky to have the calmest, quietest bees in all the world.  She tries to keep me focused, but I ask, "Do you think these bees are dead?"  She looks at the frames as I'm inserting them and watching the pile of dead bees collect on the floor.  "Or sleeping."  she replies.  I'm not convinced they are sleeping and neither is she, but she is an eternal optimist.

It is true.  My hive died.  I call my mentor and he quickly finds a solution and promises to right the wrong.  He puts a plan in to action and the fate of the brood(the baby, unborn bees) is determined to be salvageable.  We plan a meeting for tomorrow.  Today was not our day to get bees.  Chloe said, "I think you are probably more upset about this than me."  She is right.  She didn't see the thousands of dead bees surrounding the beautifully crafted brood and combs of honey.  She didn't see the silent, unmoving bodies of an entire bee colony, lifeless.

The storm is supposed to blow through this evening.  I imagine it will blow over all this drama and soon a new hive will arrive or maybe we will create a new colony out of the brood we salvage.  Whatever the PLAN B happens to be, I will never forget all of the death I witnessed today.   The vision brought to light all of the horror being seen in Boston and all across the world as people massacre other people and the lifeless bodies of a, once thriving, community are gone.  Lifeless bodies, homes, businesses.  Pray for our nation.  Pray for our WORLD.

I am thankful for the fresh perspective today.(Day 125).  Goodnight Friends.