Are You Unhappy? Take a Lesson from the Bees.

I just came in from the bee yard which is just across the field from our front door. Sometimes I go out and just sit and watch the bees flying in and out to see what they're doing. The past few weeks they've been carrying in lots of pollen to feed the brood. The colonies are increasing giving us great hope for an abundant season flowing with honey.

The birds and beasts and insects all do exactly what God wants -- no rebellion in their midst. They just do it! That's what I love about nature. We, on the other hand, have the natural law ingrained within us, but have the free will to rebel against it -- to our own sorrow. And I sometimes wonder if the extremes of nature, the natural disasters, floods, tsunamis, etc. aren't a reflection of OUR REBELLION. Perhaps our sins give Satan the power to use nature against us.


If you are unhappy, ask yourself if your life is conforming to God's laws. On a family retreat we attended years ago the repeated message was, "Sin is the cause of all unhappiness." It might not be personal sin. Perhaps it's societal sin, or the ravages of original sin. God wants nothing but our happiness, but he allows us to make decisions that have terrible consequences.

I don't know if bees can be happy. Ours often seem to be content. When they are, they're placid as can be. We hardly need a smoker or anything to calm them down. Is that bee happiness? I don't know, but I love to watch them and take a lesson from them to keep busy and hum while I work and pray. Ora et labora.