Shelter

“Shelter: “Something beneath, behind, or within which a person, animal or thing is protected…”

Dictionary.com

“Shelter in place.” These are difficult words to hear in the unsettling times of a global pandemic. Looking in the dictionary for the definition of shelter, I was drawn to the use of “within.” At first glance, my mind envisioned a house, cave or shed. As I wandered deeper into thought, within became a place inside ourselves where we find refuge and protection. This is the interior landscape, the road less traveled, long lost to a “too busy” world. As I write this, stringing letters into words, I turn to the natural world, in particular bees, to help make sense of this new paradigm we live in.

There are many types of bee shelters. Hollow wood or a hole in the ground becomes a home. Honeybees build a hive for the colony. They are a “super organism”…they endure as a collective. They are a single sphere of unity, held together by thousands of interdependent mutual relationships. Once the bees are born, they will spend 21 days in the hive. The philosopher, Rudolf Steiner, has written several lectures on bees. By observing them, we can learn about building a sustainable world. He points out that “twenty one days is the approximate time span the sun needs to revolve once on its axis and return to the point where it can begin a new cycle.” On day 21, the bees emerge and begin a life of service.

Flight school begins! These new foragers launch themselves into the air using the sun as their compass and their highly evolved inner clock. On their missions, they share the location of a high nectar flow area with other bees by dancing or waggling.

Perhaps we can strive to be more like the honeybees. We can shelter in place, waiting to emerge to a life of service. To rise with a new awareness of the value of the collective whole and a new inward vision of pure potentiality for the global community.

We can do this!

Not to mention the dancing and honey awaiting all of us!