The Honey Bus

Content Warning: This section of the guide discusses abuse and depression.

Of all of the lessons that Grandpa teaches Meredith in The Honey Bee, the most important is the interconnectedness of plant, animal, and human lives on Earth. As a beekeeper, Grandpa regularly works with small, seemingly insignificant creatures; however, he teaches Meredith that bees are as important as every other life on Earth and should be treated as such. Throughout the memoir, Meredith May demonstrates that there are infinite connections between human and non-human lives.

When Meredith and her family first move to California, the state is experiencing a severe drought. As a result of watering restrictions, “Grandpa was letting his fruit trees die, and he was worried that there wouldn’t be enough flowers for the bees to make honey” (49). May is careful to note that Grandpa’s concern is not a loss of income from lack of honey sales but rather the bees’ ability to maintain a healthy hive. As pollinators, Grandpa’s bees play an essential role in the local ecology, so he sees losing hives as “a setback to nature itself” (211). Widespread loss of pollinators can lead to fewer flowering and fruiting plants, which can impact animals that rely on those plants for food.