All of a Sudden, the Bees are Here…
It seems that we get our animal friends delivered in a very quick fashion around here. We thought we had more time before the bees arrived but all of a sudden, they were in Taos and we had to go and pick them up. Last night I was ravaging YouTube, watching bee videos (most of which were terrible) on what to feed your bees and how to get them into the hive. There is a lot of terrible bee advice to sort though and when you know nothing about bees in the first place, it’s hard to tell which advice is bad. If anyone needs a deeply reliable bee resource, Jack’s good friend hooked us up with this amazing spot in Virginia. Apparently, I shall now be attending monthly bee lectures and Q + A forums. I have a lot of questions about the bees.
After a full day, Heathar and I made our last sweep of the property first tucking in the baby chicks, leaving the heat lamp on for their 2-week old bodies and filling their feeders up as they fought each other for the grit even at 8pm. We then tucked the more mature lady laying chickens into their coop (which they now have learned to go in all on their own when the sun goes down) and found two of them cuddling together on a window sill. If you have never seen chickens cuddle, it’s very endearing. We then tucked the bess in, filling up their sugar water one more time and marveling at how they all managed to figure out how to get to their queen who was placed strategically inside the hive upon arrival. The bees had made their way inside the hive but we could still hear the strong, quiet hum of them doing their nighttime work. I don’t know what bees do at night yet but I’m sure I’ll find out soon. We tucked the car into the garage and manually pulled the garage door down, protecting our engine from the mice and rats. We were like sleep fairies, walking around and sprinkling nighttime dust on all the beings who live on our property. Just wait until the pigs get here in two weeks.
One of my favorite parts about the bees so far is that they need a lot of flowers. One thing our property does not have a lot of yet is flowers. We have piñon trees and cedar trees, one tilted but strong cottonwood tree and one lavender bush but not many flowers. There are very tiny white and purple flowers just starting to peek their heads around the corners of our soil, but we know the bees will need a flower bounty. This means we get to decorate the property with hundreds and hundreds of flowers and flowers that thrive in the dry, high and hot desert like: Dahlias, Dasies, Zinnias, Roses, Tulips, Marigolds, Black Eyed Susans and Lilies. The flower game is going to be on y’all.
Perhaps the best news of the day, is that we found the rattlesnake that has been living under the porch of my office. I am sad and relieved to report that the great rattlesnake is now dead. This is the third rattlesnake we have had to get rid of on our property and I do believe it is the end of the nest. As I was walking up to my office this afternoon, I saw the snake coiled in the sun — it was warm today and he was out enjoying the weather like all of us were. He was in a deep mood of blending in with the brown landscape and I almost didn’t see him. It was his big, black eye that caught my attention. I always look for him when I walk up to my office and today, I finally saw him. He didn’t slither away, he just sat there, coiled and waiting. I immediately called down to Heathar and Jack (who just thought I was singing and talking loudly to the chickens which would not be out of the ordinary for me) but eventually, they came outside to see what I was yelling about. In minutes, our master snake wrangler of a neighbor was over in his ATV and together, he and Heathar killed the snake, cutting off it’s head with a shovel. The snake hissed and writhed as it took it’s time to die. I felt both a deep sadness as I watched the snake die and also, a sweeping relief that perhaps the nest of rattlesnakes would no longer grace our property. It seems we have the highest running tally of rattlesnakes found on our property in Ojo Sarco. Some neighbors have never seen a rattlesnake in 60 years of living on this land.
I have been taking the snakes as a symbol since they have been living under my office where I do depth psychotherapy and astrological counseling with clients. I need the snake medicine, I love the snake energy and also, I recognize its danger. I have dreamt about snakes my entire life, this creature being a prominent one in my unconscious. I found it fitting that they welcomed me into the space where I would be doing the deepest, alchemical work with myself and my clients. I thank the snakes and also, I would love not to encounter possible death on my way to work every day.
There was something intense about today. The bees, the snake, the way the air felt in these mountains. It all made me think about the approaching lunar eclipse on Friday. I have never stood in a swarm of bees (as happened today) and I have never stood in one and tried to stay calm. Like many animals, bees can sense your fear and tension. I don’t believe they respond well to it. I wish I was one of those people who could stay calm in order to keep the animals at ease but there is something about having to stay relaxed in order to stay safe that makes me feel very tense. Meanwhile, Jack went in with the bees as calm as a Buddhist monk and also, in a tank top — arms bare to the world of the hive. I was more tentative, not yet wearing my bee suit but buttoning up my collared shirt to the very last button — looking more like a bee priest. It will take me a while to be able to stand in a swarm of bees and feel calm and it will take me a while to learn how to deal with a rattlesnake when I see one. The intensity of the farm and the sweet, soft chicken window sill cuddle of the farm — it’s all happening and the place is coming more and more to life.
