Bees

The Bees belong to the working landscape and daily life of Old Willie’s household: he kept many hives at the foot of the orchard and had once lectured to bee societies throughout the country. Years later, a swarm of bees in his beard becomes one of John McGahern’s most vivid childhood images of the old beekeeper, whose care for them appears as practiced and unceremonious as conversation.

Hives and Old Willie’s Life

Old Willie’s many hives stood at the foot of the great orchard on the Moroney farm. In his wife’s lifetime, he travelled around the country to give lectures to bee societies. After her death, he no longer left the house and its immediate surroundings, but the hives remained part of the small world in which he lived. The account places the bees alongside the orchard, the stone outbuildings and the household’s quiet routines, rather than presenting them as a separate or specialised pursuit.

Bees in the Household

Old Willie and his son, Andy Moroney, lived simply, for the most part on tea, bread and honey, with a substantial stew now and again. The household’s rhythms were distinctive: cutlery, glasses and crockery accumulated until everything was dirty, then father and son washed it all at once, perhaps once a month. The bees thus appear within a domestic setting marked by plenty of books and a large stone house, but also by modest meals and an improvised approach to housekeeping.

The Bees in the Beard

As a boy, John McGahern was sent to buy apples and fell into conversation with Old Willie about books; the beekeeper then gave him free access to the library. On a still summer morning, they sat with tea, bread and raspberry jam—not honey—and talked about a book John had returned. Jam fell into Willie’s long, flat, greasy beard, which covered the front of his shirt and bore stains from food and drink. A loud buzzing began within it. Willie must have been through his hives early that morning; he rose, drew the bees out with his long, delicate fingers and tossed them into the yard air, all without interrupting the conversation. The scene makes the bees an ordinary, intimate presence: their sudden movement brings the outside into the kitchen, while Willie’s quiet handling of them leaves the exchange about books uninterrupted.