The Bees Have It - June 2009

Bees are building hives inside the door of the RV! How they are getting inside the tightly sealed space is not the question. The question is how to make sure they never return! Luckily the hives were at the beginning stages so I could quickly destroy them. I am not sure of all the spaces the little stingers can get into. Right now I am spraying everywhere! To prepare for my new life as a fulltimer, I am reading books with information on living on an RV when I should be reading the books on how to set up my RV. One book tried to discourage traveling with pets. I think the authors are nuts. I would not travel without my pets. There is a reason they are called pets as opposed to animals. Of course, as with many pet people, I call mine my kids. They are an important part of my life. I would never give them to another home or have them put down because they have become inconvenient. By adopting them I agreed to love and care for them. They are company and give me great pleasure. They also protect me, especially Princess who is the smallest yet the most aggressive. No one enters the house until she has inspected them and deemed them to be worthy. I am looking forward to reading books of interest and fiction. I cannot think of a more pleasant way to spend a day than curling up on the couch or sitting outside in the shade with a good book and a cup of tea. School books will soon be available by down loading from computers which will alleviate some of the crippling weight of kids’ backpacks. This is great as it will reduce the growing number of kids with back problems. However, for pleasure reading there is nothing more satisfying than to touch the fragrant pages of a book while holding it open on one’s chest, getting lost in another life in another time and/or location. I will also be able to write freely. In higher education (my most recent life) professors are required to publish so called scholarly papers. These papers, based on research and studies, have their place I guess, however they are dry and abstract. They lack any hint of feeling or emotion. They do not allow for the reader to reach within themselves, to cry, dance, to see colors. I believe emotions in scholarly papers may drive the readers to want to work for change in themselves, their community, the nation, and/or the world. The papers may allow the readers to feel. Perhaps because I am an artist the need to bring feelings, thought, relief, an exploration of self, or whatever the listener needs to feel at the time is the most important reason for writing. I am free to write from long buried feelings. I will allow the multi colored butterflies to take flight and watch them as they fly free on the wind. I will be me