The Beekeeper's Promise

by Fiona Valpy

We meet Eliane in 2017 when she is tending bees.  She is in her 90s.

We meet Abi next, also in 2017, as she tells us her story.  We see that Abi is emotionally lost.  We later learn that she was in an abusive marriage and in a horrible car accident and is just now beginning to heal.  She has come to France with a friend to attend a yoga retreat and ends up taking on employment at the chateau where Eliane lived during World War II. 

We learn Eliane’s story, beginning in 1938 through a narrator.  She was a keeper of bees, a tender of gardens, and quietly did what she could to support’s France’s resistance effort.  The story goes through the end of World War II. 

As Abi learns of Eliane’s story, she gathers strength and courage. 

This was mostly clean—no language or sex, but there was a scene briefly telling the results of Nazi violence.

I'm not a huge fan of books with dual time-lines and major characters, but I thought the author managed both well in this book.

I keep saying I’m done with WWII stories, and then another falls in my lap, and I learn some other experience from the war, of the courage and strength of those who lived through it and see how they can impact others’ and my own life.  I’m definitely glad I read this one.

Quotes
Abi:  “That’ll teach me to be spontaneous, I think, as I trudge along the hot tarmac of the road.  Nothing good ever comes of it.”    p. 6 ¶1

Lisette, Eliane’s mother, before helping several Jewish people past German checkpoints: 
“She put her hand gently on [her husband’s] and smiled at him, although there was a sadness behind the smile.  ‘You know, Gustave, my attitude has always been to try to carry on as normal, ignoring the war as much as possible, just concentrating on getting my family and my patients safely through it.  But there’s a question I ask myself every day.’  She looked past him, out of the window towards the weir.  ‘When do you cross the line?  What does it take to reach that point?  For your country to be threatened?  Your way of life?  Your neighbours’ homes?  Or you own?  For your friends to be in danger?  Or your children?’  She turned back to face him.  ‘Every one of us has to make that decision for ourselves.  Whether we win or lose this war, we will have to live with the consequences of our decisions.  I’ve asked myself:  “What will be on your conscience when all this is over?  What will your decision be when you get to that crossing point?”  Well, I’m at that crossing point now.  And I’ve made my decision.  Just as all of you –‘ she glanced around at Eliane, Yves and Jacques – ‘have done already.’”  [I forgot to note the page and paragraph for this quote.]

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Excellent Advice for Living: Wisdom I Wish I'd Known Earlier

by Kevin Kelly

The author said he wanted to collect these for the benefit of his children.  In my opinion, that's a great idea.  My father was a wise man and I wish he'd written down some of his best bits of wisdom.  I remember a few things he used to say, but not many.

These were short insights with one, two, or three entries per page, each a sentence or several long.  I didn't race through this book but took a few minutes, or longer, to think about each bit of advice.   

I've included a few of his insights, below.  They are ones that I needed to hear for my own circumstances.

“Collecting things benefits you only I you display your collection prominently and share it in joy with others.  The opposite of this is hoarding.”’    p. 9

“If you are looking for something in your house and you finally find it, when you’re done with it, don’t put it back where you found it.  Put it back where you first looked for it.”    p. 13

“A great way to understand yourself is to seriously reflect on everything you find irritating in others.”    p. 14

“If you are the smartest person in the room, you are in the wrong room.  Hang out with, and learn from, people smarter than yourself.  Even better, find smart people who will disagree with you.”    p. 19

“The purpose of a habit is to remove that action from self-negotiation.  You no longer expend energy deciding whether to do it.  You just do it.  Good habits can range from telling the truth to flossing.”    p. 23

“Promptness is a sign of respect.”     p. 24

“Nothing elevates a person higher than taking responsibility for their mistakes.  If you mess up, fess up.  It’s astounding how powerful this ownership is.”    p. 30

“If you are not falling down occasionally, you are just coasting.’    p. 32

“Learn how to tie a bowline knot.  Practice in the dark.  With one hand.  For the rest of your life you’ll use this knot more times than you would ever believe.”    p. 60

“All the greatest prizes in life in wealth, relationships, or knowledge come from the magic of compounding interest, by amplifying small steady gains.  All you need for abundance is to keep adding 1% more than you subtract on a regular basis.”    p. 85

“When you have good news and bad news, give the bad news first, because we remember how things end more than how they begin.  So elevate the ending with good news.”    p. 115

“Denying or deflecting a compliment is rude.  Accept it with thanks, even if you believe it is not deserved.”    p. 126

“A wise man said:  Before you speak, let your words pass through three gates.  At the first gate, ask yourself, ‘Is it true?’  At the second gate ask, ‘Is it necessary?’  At the third gate ask, ‘Is it kind?’”    p. 135

“Remember that repair tasks take 3 times longer than expected, even when you expect them to take 3 times longer.”    p. 152

“You will thrive more—and so will others—when you promote what you love rather than bash what you hate.  Life is short; focus on the good stuff.”    p. 166

“Anger is not the proper response to anger.  When you see someone angry you are seeing their pain.  Compassion is the proper response to anger.”    p. 177

“Trust is earned in drops and lost in buckets.  Unwavering honesty will help seal in trust.”    p. 193

“Your best teacher is your last mistake.    p. 195

“Instead of asking your child what they learned today, ask them who they helped today.”    p. 196

“To succeed once, focus on the outcome; to keep succeeding, focus on the process that makes the outcome.”     p. 198

“The natural state of all possessions is to need repair and maintenance.  What you own will eventually own you.  Choose selectively.”    p. 204

“Right now, no matter your age, these are your golden years.  The good stuff will yield golden memories and the bad stuff will yield golden lessons.”    p. 207

“See that old person taking forever in line?  That is the future you.  Have patience.’    p. 208

Kevin Kelly's blog is "The Technium", at https://kk.org/thetechnium/

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The World of All Creatures Great and Small: Welcome to Skeldale House

by James Steen

This was a behind-the-scenes look at the making of this TV program.  I liked it a lot!  The chapter titles include: 

• Beginnings; Setting the Scene
• The Cast
• The Creatures, Great and Small, and 
• Making It and Faking It. 

Amongst those chapters and topics were the actors’ thoughts about the show and their parts in it; the “created” animals; creating the sets; the music; etc.  It was interesting to learn that each character has a theme song and the composer explained why she chose certain instruments and/or tunes.  There were several hundred people who worked to bring about this production. 

From Jill Clark, the animal trainer:
“No matter how difficult the animal might seem, you’ll always get something out of it.  And you can always work around them as long as you know their temperament and basic behavior.  It’s a matter of thinking, what is their natural behaviour.”

I really enjoyed this book.

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