I Used to be Afraid of WAsps

WAsps? Wasps? Seriously? Christine, you are going to blog about wasps? Yes, hear me out.

When I moved to my land I did not know how many wasps lived here. I have been stung by wasps before and it hurts!! It really does ... So, once I settled in here, I came to realize that wasps were abundant here and they liked to build hives on my land. It took me a long time - years - to learn to live with them.

Yep, I did not turn to the exterminator, the waspinator poisons, and what-have-you. The wasps did sting me a few times, and I cried out in pain when it happened. Wasps are big here in the semi-desert ... and they are not to be trifled with. Those guys mean business when you get too close to their hives. And that was how I got stung, by getting too close to their hives without realizing it. By the time I realized it, it was too late ... And running didn't help, those guys come after you with a vengeance. Don't mess with their babies!

Truth be told, I was really scared of them ...

After that, whenever I saw wasps building new hives, I made sure to get rid of them. I either smoked them out or I cut the hive out of the tree or wall whenever the huge flying monsters with the long stings were not around.

Then, the unthinkable happened. I learned to live with them. I mean, they still scare me and I still don't want to get stung. That risk still exists. However, I have learned to understand them by living here in the middle of nowhere.

How?

When they fly with their stinger out, it means that they are looking for a place to build a new hive. They do not sting you that easily, unless you get too close to their hive, then they get protective and they will sting.

Wasps are carnivores. I did not know that until one day I observed a wasp pull a struggling cockroach into a hole in the wall. I did some research and yes, it turns out that they are carnivores. So, that's good to know, and certainly useful.

They are intelligent. They know me and they pass that knowledge on to their offspring. I know I sound crazy, but I swear that the wasps and I are living together with no troubles. New wasps that are born leave me alone too. They know I don't harm them.

Well, there is the occasional wasp that flies into my trailer looking for a new place to build a hive, and that is freaky, and so I shoo them out. Nonetheless, they often fly past me or nearly crash into me when flying and nothing happens.

I have also rescued some of them from water bowls, and I believe that they have collective intelligence. They remember what I do and they know I won't harm them, and so they don't harm me.

I also learned to allow their hives. First of all, their hives are small, second, they are carnivores, so they get rid of not so pleasant little critters. If this were a fantasy novel, I might consider training them to attack horrible neighbors, haha, (I'm a writer, I can't help it, sorry) but well, the thing is, I used to fear them so much and we have come to an understanding and I learned how useful and smart they are.

:-)

wasp hive outside my window, next to my bed, they are safe and so am I ;-) protected by the mosquito netting.

WAsps

Those WAsps can be scary at times, and what we don't know is intimidating. We always fear what we don't know, but when we immerse ourselves into it, those scary things often turn out to be OK; even more than all right, we end up living with them and even loving them.

Pinterest, Canva, social media, email marketing, Google Analytics, it can all feel overwhelming at first and a little scary to dive into, but in the end they won't sting, they will only benefit you if you dive in and allow yourself to learn about them and integrate them into your daily schedule.

It is always a great feeling when you incorporate into your life something that frightened you at first or made you cringe; and then you end up using it, seeing its benefits, and even loving it. That in itself is a victory!