A Mysterious Visitation

Three times now this week, a swarm of bees have arrived on or near the deck behind my house.  They come– so the bee wise say – to rest for an hour or so on their way to new dwellings.  They land in an intense grouping, a strangely shaped ball, and I learn that inside this moving structure is the new queen, who must be kept at 92 degrees Fahrenheit at all times.  There are scout bees busily seeking their new home; a hollow place inside a tree is ideal.  And these are the drones and workers accompanying the queen, keeping her warm and safe. They are beautiful, their sound is like I imagine the hum of the universe to be.  And they are filled with mythic power.  A visiting friend, after taking photo after photo, Googled bees and found, for example, this quote: “The queen bee is to her hive as a goddess is to her earthlings.”  The bee is an ancient symbol of the goddess, in Catal Huyuk, Sumer,  Rhodes, Sicily, Spain, Crete, and Egypt, her images abound.  Bees are said to hold knowledge of the future, and to bring order; they represent the souls of the dead, and also symbols of resurrection.  Honey is thought to be a source of divine nourishment.  And it’s not about beliefs in the long, long ago.  A Bee Crop Circle appeared in England in 2004.  And three times this week a swarm of bees hummed a powerful blessing while they rested during the heat of the day from their ancient and modern duties.