A few weeks (or was it months?) ago, I sat at a little diner with Amy. It’s rare that I get to spend time with her anymore because I’m staying with my father so much. I had messaged her that day — “I’m going to be in Greene this afternoon. Do you have any time?”
We sat and talked for two hours, just sharing our lives with each other. Have I ever mentioned how much I love Amy? The openness and honesty of our conversations is always so refreshing.
In the course of our little tête–à–tête, Amy told me about a paper she was working on for a class she was taking.
“It’s a pretty big project,” she said. “I have to write a symbol paper.”
“What’s a symbol paper?” I asked.
“It’s a paper about a symbol,” she said.
Frankly, I’ve never been good at symbolism.
When I took a Flannery O’Connor class last year, we had to read “Good Country People.” In it (spoiler alert), the main character, Hulga, has her wooden leg stolen by smarmy salesman. It turns out the leg was a symbol for something — I don’t even remember — but the whole time I thought it was just a leg.
I recently finished Ted Dekker’s Martyr’s Song in which ravens circle frequently and a dove alights at opportune times. Evil and good — that symbolism was a little too blatant for me. It felt forced.
Amy had chosen bees as her symbol. She and her husband have a hive, and she told me about all the places bees crop up in literature and art.
Suddenly, I was seeing bees everywhere.
Seriously.
In the dead of winter, of course, so they weren’t the live, buzzing, stinging, gathering pollen-and-nectar variety, but there they were, tucked into pictures in so many of the children’s books I had rescued. A bee seems to add a touch of realism to any garden picture.
I started collecting bees, too, along with my rabbit pictures from books. Bees show up in my cards with some frequency now.
But it’s prudent that I leave the symbolism aspect to Amy.
The card above is one of the first I made with bees in it. The big bee in the lower right corner (and the word “buzz”) is from Ezra Jack Keats’ book Over in the Meadow. The big splash of flowers are from a pop-up book that had been discarded because, as is the true fate of most pop-up books, it no longer popped, but was ripped on nearly every page. The other two flowers — the purple one with the bee visiting, and the yellow one behind — are from books that I forgot to make note of. Dear illustrators, please forgive me.
Hot Dogs and Marmalade 
I had to read The Great Gatsby at 16 … I’m still unable to really enjoy it for all the talk of the blasted Green Light symbolism (which had me zone out so I actually can’t remember what it symbolised. AND I was of the opinion that Fitzgerald just meant it was a green light …. but then I’m a bit of a simpleton!). I love your bees, I love bees, we should all love bees because bees hold our fate in their little buzzy wings and their nectar hoovering noses. I also loved this piece. Thank you.
Last fall I heard someone give a talk about The Great Gatsby, and, yes, they were talking about symbolism. I sort of thought it was interesting at the time, but if he mentioned a Green Light, I totally missed it — as I do most symbolism.
Yes, bees. I can relate to bees. I want to have my own hive(s) of bees and paint them (the hives, not the bees) delightful colors and reap the goodness of the bees’ hard work. We owe so much to bees.
Oh but you must. The bees need good folks to nurture them. I have no garden at the moment and I am impatient for land (its supposed to be here in France but don’t be surprised with all the strange and alarming politicking the world over if I end up your pond-side my husband, you see is American) …. when I have land I will bee-keep. Colourful hives sound delectable. I’m not much f an artist so perhaps you will market yours for clumsy fools like me to buy?
The card is beautiful. Well done, the story was good too.
Hey, It’s Ann visiting from A to Z So Much to Choose From and
Science Ladybug
Thanks, Ann!
Another beautiful post ~ Sally, I can’t begin to say how much I enjoy your writing, stories, insights into your heart and family and life. And I, too, want some bees…
Love you, my friend…
I agree that the card is beautiful. Many people would surely love that as a painting.
Thanks. My kids tell me that I should try to sell my cards, but the real artwork isn’t mine so I wouldn’t feel right about it. Plus it would probably be breaking all sorts of copyright laws. I’m just rescuing the art from worn-out books and giving it a second chance.
Well you do a wonderful job of recreating the art.
Thank you.
So what do all the bees mean???? I don’t get symbolism either and never pick up on it. I always fell asleep in Eng Lit when the teacher droned on (see what I did there…) about themes and symbols. Your card, however, is fabulous!
I’ll have to ask Amy what they mean.
As Winnie the Pooh said, “You never can tell with bees.”
I have a most remarkable close up of a real bee, and a pic of a silo with a tree growing out the top. I should send them to you! (Finding them first… you know how it goes.)
Or post them sometime! S is for Silo, you know?
So delighted to have found my way here. Love your card, love your theme, and love bees.
Thanks for visiting, Deborah. Blessings (benisons?) to you.
I’ve never been good with symbolism either.
We should have a “Symbolism Escapes Me” club — and have the logo be something really symbolic.
I think of the hippo in “Heart of Darkness”, which I had to read for an English class one time. I was SURE the hippo meant something, but I had not a clue what.
Turns out it was just a hippo.
Then a hippo must become our logo.