A Lifetime in Bees - Jim Dunne, Oulart, Co. Wexford

Here is short clip I recorded on my phone with Jim Dunne out in Oulart last weekend as he sat in his shed while at his feet was a drum of this years honey. In the clip Jim chats about how he got into bees 83 or 84 years ago and how in his 94th year, he still keeps them.

Absolutely lovely to listen to Jim as he remembers the who first gave him a swarm 83 years ago and how he made his first hives up out of old butter boxes and then pieces of furniture.

The video quality isn’t great and every now and again, you will will hear his dog Spot brush by me on his chain. I called to Jim to say hello and wasn’t planning on recording him as all I had was my phone in my pocket. Sometime, that’s all you need as listening to Jim here is precious, especially when he talks about how we have destroyed so many of the clover meadows with chemicals. Powerful words and coming from a man with lifetime of experience behind him.

By the way - he hadn’t his hearing aids in so he found it a little hard to hear me.Enjoy nevertheless and I’ll never tire of listen to him. Love how he ends the chat by saying “That’s my lifetime in bees, you won’t beat that” and then lets out a big hearty laugh.

A rare one.

Text: Michael Fortune