Bee Good!

 

Are you afraid of bees? It’s ok if you are. Papaw is not really afraid of bees, but there are some that he doesn’t really like. Paper wasps, the slow, yellow and black kind, are really mean sometimes! They should probably be avoided. There are certain bees that I really like to watch. Honey bees are very pretty and help our plants grow food. They also make honey, which Papaw likes to put in his coffee.

On the flowers on Papaw’s fence are a special kind of bee. It is called the Valley Carpenter Bee. They are really big, so they look scary, but they are usually very gentle. They are really fizzy and make a cute buzzing sound. They fly from flower to flower gathering pollen and drinking nectar. One really cool thing is that the male and female are different colors. The female is all black and although she can sting, she never does unless she is attacked. The male looks like a fuzzy golden teddy bear with green eyes. Although he can’t sting, he likes to fly in your face and try to scare you. It makes Papaw laugh. I guess he just doesn’t want you to know he’s as scared as you are. Since he has no stinger he has to act tough. Papaw just smiles and tell him, “Go back to the flowers you silly bee”.  

The mom burrows into wood and lay her eggs in the tunnel. She leaves a package of food called “bee bread” for the baby. Then she seals the whole and lays another egg. She might do that 7 or 8 times! Later, they hatch one at a time, the outside ones first. She will feed them for a few days and them they fly away to find their own flowers. The dad just seems to fly around the flower bushes to try to keep other birds and insects from drinking his nectar. They honey bees just laugh and go get it anyway.

Carpenter Bees can be very helpful to farmers. In Hawaii, Carpenter Bees help pollenate the passion fruit vines. Papaw love passion fruit in his drinks. It’s a good thing that there are bees to help them grow. Next time you get the chance, stop and watch the busy bees.  You will find out how much they do. Just don't touch them without your parent's permission!

I have added a couple short videos of the moms drinking nectar and gathering pollen. You can see the yellow pollen on her fuzzy back. I couldn't get one of the dad but I will keep looking!

I hope you liked meeting Papaw’s busy bee friends!

Love,

Papaw

**Male bee  picture courtesy of  https://thrasherpestcontrol.com/golden-snitch-of-the-bee-world-male-valley-carpenter-bees-take-flight/

For more information: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xylocopa_sonorina

Mother’s Day

This Sunday May 11^th, is Mother’s Day. Mother’s Day is celebrated in some form pretty much all around the world. England, in the 1800’s had Mother’s Sunday. Other countries have various traditions and different days. Although the origin of the celebration is hard to track down, the first Mother’s Day in the US was started by Anna Jarvis in 1907 in honor of her own mother. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mother%27s_Day?scrlybrkr 

It is traditionally commemorated on the 2^nd Sunday of May. It is a time where we appreciate and celebrate our mothers who have done so much for us. I know your mothers work very hard, even after you go to sleep. They might be cleaning, doing laundry, planning meals, studying, or even making a surprise dessert for you! They do so many things that you may not think about. Some may be your teacher. Some have a job in a company. Some stay at home and work very hard making sure your home is a happy place. Some may even have to do both! On the weekends, they might also be Sunday School teachers, lead worship, or even be a coach.

So how can we show our mothers how much we love them? First, give her a great big hug and tell her you love her. Next, ask your dad how you as a family can make her day special. Going to church with her is always a good idea.

Here is a short list of other things you could do. (You may have to ask your dad to help you with some of these ideas.)

·         Personalized Card: Make a card for your mom. Tell her how much you lover her!

·         Spa Day at Home: Create a relaxing atmosphere with scented candles, a hot bath, face masks, and hand creams. 

·         Picnic in the Park: Pack a basket with her favorite snacks and drinks and enjoy the outdoors. 

·         Nature Hike: Choose a well-worn trail or explore a new area together. 

·         Brunch at Home: Prepare a delicious brunch with her favorite dishes. 

·         Fragrant Florals: Give her a beautiful bouquet of flowers or a plant to brighten up her space. 

·         Fashionable Accessories: Choose a necklace, bracelet, or other jewelry that she'll love. 

·         Food and Chocolates: Treat her to her favorite sweets or a gourmet food basket. 

Make or Buy a Special Card for Her:

Here are some coloring pages so you can make your own card for mother. Color it pretty! Make sure you tell her how special she is to you!

     

  

  

Love, Papaw

Lightning & Thunder

This week I want to talk about lightning & thunder. Have you ever been in a storm where you heard thunder? It can be kind of scary! But the thunder cannot hurt you. It’s just noise. And it happens after the lightning has already happened. It’s still a good thing to go indoors when you hear it.  You don’t want to get struck by lightning!

Lightning is a huge spark that can strike from a cloud to the ground, from the ground up to a cloud, or even from cloud to cloud. Lightning is very hot. It can be 50,000 degrees Fahrenheit! I can have the power of up to 80 million car batteries. Wow that’s powerful. They say that lightning strikes the earth somewhere 100 times every second.  We do not have that much lightning in California, but there is a place in Venezuela called Lake Maracaibo that has the most lightning of any place in the world, It has thunderstorms about 150 days a year. That’s like having a lightning storm every 3 days! Benjamin Franklin (the guy on the $100 dollar bill) is said to be the inventor of the lightning rod. It was a piece of metal put on houses in the 1700’s to keep them from catching fire during lightning storms. Lightning rods saved a lot of buildings and they are still in use today in some places. 

If you want to find out more about lightning, here are some fun sites.

https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/lightning-

https://www.weatherwizkids.com/weather/lightning/

 

Here are some fun facts about lightning:

• ·      Lightning is caused by imbalances in electric charges within or between clouds and the ground.
• ·       The air around a lightning strike can be heated to an incredible 50,000 degrees Fahrenheit (27,700 degrees Celsius), which is hotter than the surface of the sun.
• ·       Thunder is the sound produced by the rapid expansion of air due to the intense heat of a lightning strike.
• ·       You can estimate the distance of a thunderstorm by counting the seconds between seeing lightning and hearing thunder, with each 5 seconds representing 1 mile.
• ·       The Earth experiences an average of 100 lightning strikes per second worldwide.
• ·       Lightning can strike outside of thunderstorms, and it's important to take shelter indoors when thunder is heard, according to the National Weather Service (.gov).
• ·       Lightning can strike the same place multiple times.
• ·       Lightning can occur even without rain, sometimes called blue-sky lightning.
• ·       Volcanic eruptions can also cause lightning as ash and other debris collide.
• ·       A rare phenomenon where a glowing ball of lightning appears, sometimes lasting longer than a normal lightning strike.
• ·       Lightning can strike beaches and melt sand, forming unique rock formations called fulgurites.

            (Generated by AI)

Here are some videos to help explain lightning. 

      

Hope you enjoyed thunder & lightning!

Papaw.

Abraham Lincoln

 

This week, at the request of one of my grandsons, Notes from Papaw is about Abraham Lincoln. I think I might know a little bit about him since I was born in his home state of Illinois. Lincoln was born in Kentucky, and was mostly self-educated. Even so, in 1836, he became a lawyer in  Springfield Illinois. He worked tirelessly, and was elected to the Illinois State Congress. One of the things he is remembered for is his honesty. He earned the name “Honest Abe” during his years as a lawyer and politician. In 1860 he became the 16^th President of the United States. He worked hard to preserve the Union during the Civil War. On January 1, 1863 he signed the Emancipation Proclamation, which freed all of the slaves in the southern states. He worked very hard to bring an end to war and end slavery. He may be best known for his speech called The Gettysburg Address that was given after the Battle of Gettysburg in November of 1863. It show how much he cared about our country and our form of government.

The Gettysburg Address

Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal. Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate—we can not consecrate—we can not hallow—this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us—that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion—that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.  —Abraham Lincoln

On April 9, 1965 the Civil War officially ended. Six days later, on the morning of April 15, 1865, Lincoln died from an assassin’s bullet having been shot the night before at Ford’s Theater by John Wilkes Booth, a pro confederate sympathizer. The whole nation mourned him. There was a funeral service in Washington, DC where there was a funeral procession (kind of like a sad parade) and where he was “laid in state” in the Capitol so the American people could walk by and say goodbye to him.  Then a funeral train took him through 7 states to Springfield, Illinois. The train only traveled 20 miles an hour. In every town it stopped, crowds of people where there to pay their respects. He is buried at the Oakridge Cemetery in Springfield, Illinois. Here is a picture of Lincoln’s tomb. Papaw actually got to rub the nose of the statue in front as a boy. It was said to bring good luck. Silly Papaw!

 https://www.nps.gov/people/abraham-lincoln.htm

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Abraham-Lincoln

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lincoln_Tomb

 That’s all for today!

Love Papaw.

He is Risen, As He Said

 

This Sunday is Easter Sunday. It’s often portrayed as the beginning of Spring; a time of pretty flowers, of Easter bunnies and chocolate eggs in finely colored Easter baskets. Now Papaw likes Easter eggs and Easter baskets, and he loves chocolate, but there is so much more. I think,  for the Christian Church, it is the most important holiday, even greater than Christmas. It is the day we celebrate the fact that the angels rolled the stone away from the tomb and Jesus was raised to life. His birth is wonderful, but Easter is where our salvation is finished. The cross is a powerful religious symbol, but without the resurrection, it becomes meaningless. If Jesus had not been raised on the third day, there would be no hope of resurrection for us.

Papaw remembers what it was like being a kid. We looked forward to Easter treats, egg hunts, going to church in new Easter outfits, and then a great feast with family and friends when we got back home. I hope you get an Easter basket. I hope you get to hunt Easter eggs in the yard. If I could be there I would help you. I hope you get a chocolate bunny. ( If you don’t, tell Mema. She will know what to do.) I hope you have a feast with family and friends. Just remember that The resurrection of Jesus is what it’s really about. Don’t forget to thank Him for his gift of salvation!

After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Matthew 28: 1-6

 

 

Palm Sunday

 

Matthew 21:1-9  Now when they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, ² saying to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. ³ If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them at once.” ⁴ This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying,

⁵ “Say to the daughter of Zion,

‘Behold, your king is coming to you,

    humble, and mounted on a donkey,

    on a colt,^[a] the foal of a beast of burden.’”

⁶ The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them. ⁷ They brought the donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and he sat on them. ⁸ Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. ⁹ And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” 

So this Sunday is Palm Sunday. Palm Sunday is the Sunday before Easter. It celebrates Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem. The Bible says that Jesus told his disciples to go into town and they would find a young donkey that no one had ever ridden on. If anyone ask, they were to say that “the master has need of it.” This was done to fulfil the prophecy in Zachariah. Jesus road on the donkey and started into the city of Jerusalem. The people laid down palm branches in front of him to make the road special. Maybe there was mud or too much dust. Some even laid down their coats. It was a sign of respect. They shouted “Hosanna!” which means, “Save us we pray!”

But they were hoping he would become the king. Jesus would have been a great king, but that is not why he came. He came to start the Kingdom of God here on Earth, but like not all the other kings did. The kingdom was meant to be in our hearts. He came to save us not from physical trouble or from cruel leaders, but from the chains of sin. He came to set our spirits free. Now we can say “Hallelujah! Which means “God be praised!” It is an expression of joy and thankfulness. Be sure to tell God thank you often. He has done so many things for us. Most of all, He sent Jesus to die for our sins and make a way for us to go to heaven. But that’s next week…

Hosanna to God in the highest!

See you next week!

Love, Papaw.

Butterflies!

As long as I can remember, I have loved butterflies. I have raise many different kinds over the years. Butterflies are called insects. Insects have three body parts, a head, a thorax, and an abdomen. They also have 3 pairs of legs. Some have wings, but not all of them. Most insects go through what is called a complete metamorphosis which mean a change from one form to another.

There are many different kinds of butterflies throughout the world. They come in many different colors. Some even have clear see-through wings! There are butterflies as big as a bird and some as small as a dime. Each butterfly has a special kind of plant or plants that its caterpillars likes to eat. Some eat tree leaves. Some like to eat flowers. You might even find caterpillars eating your vegetables in your garden. When a butterfly becomes an adult, they like to drink nectar from flowers. If you plant a flower garden like Papaw’s, you will probably see all kinds of different butterflies. You may even have a humming bird come visit!

When Papaw lived in Arizona he used to volunteer at a place called Butterfly Wonderland. You could say I was a "butterfly whisperer". I would show people all the different butterflies that were in the conservatory and sometimes they even got to hold a butterfly on a special nectar stick. Here is a picture of Papaw with a bunch of his butterfly friends. Butterflies don't bite and they can't hurt you. They tickle if they land on your skin. We used to call them buttery kisses. It was so much fun!

One of my favorite butterflies is the Gulf Fritillary. They start as eggs which the mother lays on the leaves of its host plant called passionflower. The egg hatches into a caterpillar that eats and grows. The caterpillars of the Gulf Fritillary have soft spines all over their backs. This may help keep predators away. 

After about two weeks, when the caterpillars have grown big enough, they stop eating and hang from a branch or leaf in a “J” shape. Soon they form a chrysalis. Here they rest and all of their body gets rearranged inside. After another 2 weeks they eclose (come out of thee chrysalis and are now a butterfly. What an amazing transformation!

The Bible says that in Heaven we will have new, glorified bodies. We won’t get sleepy, we won’t get hungry, (but we can still eat!) and we will never die. That kind of make us like caterpillars I guess. Someday we will get to transform just like a butterfly when we are in heaven.

Here are some butterfly pictures you can color. Be sure to color in the lines and make them beautiful!

Love, Papaw