What the Bees Know

Lyrics

I lift the lid on the last warm day
The hive is humming low
They've packed their honey, sealed the cracks
They always seem to know
When the light goes thin and the clover's done
It's time to hold things near
I stand in my old straw hat and watch
And learn what's gathered here

That's what the bees know
How to keep the summer in
How to cluster close together
When the cold comes creeping in
Nothing's lost that's stored with care
Sweetness lasts the snow
I'm learning it slowly, season by season
That's what the bees know

My neighbour left a jar of gold
Upon the garden gate
A label in her shaky hand
Says "wildflower, September, eight"
I spread it on my morning bread
And taste the whole long June
The lanes, the lime trees, the long light
Held in a single spoon

That's what the bees know
How to keep the summer in
How to cluster close together
When the cold comes creeping in
Nothing's lost that's stored with care
Sweetness lasts the snow
I'm learning it slowly, season by season
That's what the bees know

I used to spend it all at once
Every bright and open day
Now I fold a little aside
For the grey that comes to stay
And on the coldest evening
When the window's edged with frost
I'll open up a little jar
And find that nothing's lost

That's what the bees know
How to keep the summer in
How to cluster close together
When the cold comes creeping in
Nothing's lost that's stored with care
Sweetness lasts the snow
I'm learning it slowly, season by season
That's what the bees know

Hum low, hum low
The winter's slow
That's what the bees know