Imagine for a moment…
A teaspoon of honey
Take a good look at the glistening gold
And now, the anticipation as you bring it to your mouth.
It touches taste buds, setting off something magical in the
neurons a few inches above.
Feel, for a moment, the pleasure of that honey as it
overwhelms your senses.
Bask in it.
Enjoy the moment.
(If in a meeting as you read this, try not to smile too big,
or others may become suspicious and accuse you of not paying attention, or
worse yet, may accuse you of having fun while on the clock.)
Having just harvested honey from our honeybee hive, taking
from these wonderful creatures their most amazing creation, I am inspired to
share.
In that one teaspoon we just imagined…
It took 12 honeybee girls their entire 40-day lifetimes to produce
that honey.
12 of Creator’s creatures spent their lives making that
one teaspoon come to be.
And in their 12 lifetimes, they visited a total of 31,000 flowers and flew 1,000 miles to harvest the nectar.
One each foraging trip, they visit 50-100 flowers, storing
the nectar in their honey stomachs where digestive enzymes break down complex
sugars into simple sugars (glucose, fructose).
The nectar was carefully transported to the hive, regurgitated
to other bees who add enzymes and place it in the hexagon combs in the hive.
Nectar comes in as 80% water, and was then dehydrated through
fanning from the bees’ wings over a course of days until it is 15-18% water.
Finally, they cover it with beeswax, also made from nectar, preserving it for
the months ahead. If they make a mistake and make honey that is 21% water, it
will ferment. (Capped honey thousands of years old has been found, and once
uncapped, the honey is still good!)
Our bees are now in the mode of preparing for winter, as the
nectar flow usually ends at the end of July in New Mexico. They will now survive
on their stored honey through mid-April when nectar starts flowing again.
May this reflection on life and nature, via these wonderful
creatures, sit with you and enhance your day’s journey.
May it make the taste of honey that much sweeter.
May it give us pause when we see a bee today visiting a
flower.
May gratitude and awe overwhelm us when the next teaspoon of
honey finds its way to our mouth.
A'se
ReplyDeleteAnd may Creator guide us to a place of intentionality; a place where we take time to appreciate the Grace granted us by those 12 little and powerful bees that give us joy and sustenance ✨
ReplyDeleteSweet!
ReplyDeleteWell I’ve tried some of that Fleg, honey, and it was delicious before I read this blog entry. Now it tastes even better!
ReplyDeleteAmazing! Honey tastes all the sweeter when we treasure how carefully and beautifully it's made. Makes me want a spoonful in my teacup right now! Blessings...JR.
ReplyDelete