Moms are Like Bees...

Moms are like bees, but probably not in the way you're thinking of. Yes, we're busy all the time, sting when we're angry and make a lot of noise, but I found some other similarities. :) I studied bees in school with my kids recently and I was intrigued by these little creatures! A worker bee has four different jobs throughout its life - one at a time.


1. When a worker bee is four days old, it becomes a nurse. Its body produces royal jelly that it feeds to the bee larvae. It doesn't make this jelly for very long.

2. When it is twelve days old, its body starts making wax which it then uses to build the nest.

3. At eighteen days old, its body stops making wax and it switches jobs to guarding the entrance to the hive to make sure no strange bees enter.

4. Once it is three weeks old, a worker bee leaves the hive to collect nectar or pollen to make honey.

Why in the world am I telling you this? It occurred to me that those four jobs are somewhat similar to the seasons of life that we as moms go through.

1. Our first job is a nurse. Whether you breastfeed or bottle feed, you primary role with an infant is to feed it. You bond with your baby and keep him fed, warm and clean.

2. Our next job is to build our nest. As the baby grows toward toddler hood, our focus turns toward making our homes as safe, stimulating and comfortable as possible. We baby proof the wall outlets, put up gates and search for anything that might get choked on.

3. As our children get older and have more interaction with the outside world, we turn to being a protector. We think more about keep our children safe from predators, whether they're found on the street, on the internet or on the TV. We monitor what music they listen to, who they hang out with, where they go, etc. I think this stage lasts quite a while - say, elementary school until they're on their own.

4. For the last stage, honey-making, I thought of a couple different parallels. We get to enjoy the sweet rewards of our work (Lord willing!) as we see our kids blossom into adults. We enjoy more of a peer relationship with them. In another sense, this is the season of life where we can spend more time outside the hive, maybe pursuing a career or volunteer work. Now is the time to try and contribute financially to the household.

The one thing that stuck out to me in reading about bees was that they knew exactly what they were supposed to do. They knew when one job was supposed to end and another begin. How we as moms struggle with this! Shouldn't I be out doing something different? When will I get some time to pursue other things? Maybe we should follow the bees' example and do the best job we can with whatever job God has given us at the moment. There will be other jobs later.