Milestone Monday - World Bee Day!
May 20th is World Bee Day! Proclaimed in 2017 by the United Nations, events on World Bee Day educate the public about the importance of bees and beekeeping, emphasizing their valuable role as pollinators and dwindling populations. The theme for World Bee Day 2024 is Bee engaged with youth which aims to engage young folks in beekeeping activities and advocacy efforts. The public is called to action today to set up a pollinator farm of diverse native plants, buy hive products like raw honey and beeswax, and leave water bowls outside for bee water fountains.
In recognition of the day, we’re sharing All the Bees & All the Keys written by James Reaney (1926-2008) with illustrations by Rudy McToots and a musical score by John Beckwith (1927-2022). All the Bees & All the Keys was commissioned by the Junior Women’s Committee of the Toronto Symphony and first published in 1976 by Press Porcepic Ltd out of Ontario. The story was intended for narration with piano accompaniment.
This book has it all; a bee bully, a twenty-four-year grudge, dueling silver and tin bands, prophetic dreams featuring a queen-bee entity, and anthropomorphic bees who sting musicians when they make a mistake. Embedded within the chaotic storyline, All the Bees & All the Keys stresses the idea of a symbiotic relationship with bees who will help us if we help them.
Read other Milestone Monday posts here and World Bee Day posts here!
– Jenna, Special Collections Graduate Intern
