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MagicalRealist · 05-25-2009, 03:05 AM

I had a synch this morning that made my head spin:

When I awoke this morning, and for the first 15 minutes or so after getting out of bed, the words "apis cerana" kept repeating themselves in my head. It was like an earworm--I couldn't stop hearing that phrase. I had no idea what it meant; I know that Apis is the genus for honeybees, but I'd never heard of the species A. cerana. I didn't even know if the phrase was referring to bees, or to something different--for all I knew, it was gibberish. I didn't even know how to spell it; I could only guess.

I had to go run some early-morning errands, and by the time I got home I wasn't hearing that phrase anymore. In fact, I'd almost forgotten it. Then I got online, and realized that one of the members of a community I participate in uses the posting handle apis_cerana.

But even as I recognized the name as my earworm, I knew it had nothing to do with that person--it was the phrase itself that was important. So I googled it.

Apis cerana is the Asiatic, or Indian Honeybee. It's native to Southeast Asia, to Japan, to India, and to the Himalayan countries--including Tibet.

I mention Tibet, because that bit of information jumped right out at me. I have recently started reading a lot about Tibet, and Tibetan Buddhism. I keep finding books on those subjects for free, or very cheaply, with absolutely no effort on my part. They just seem to show up, like stray cats--I found a copy of the Dalai Lama's autobiography sitting on top of my recycling bin in the alley last week (which was, now that I think of it, a hilariously apt place to find it). I seem to be a magnet for books on the subject right now.

But the kicker? My given name means "honeybee."

So I'm taking this as a sign that I'm moving in the right direction. I'm also taking it as a sign that the universe (or who-/whatever is at work here) has a wonderfully sly sense of humor.

05-25-2009, 03:05 AM	#2344 (permalink)
MagicalRealist Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2008 Posts: 342	I had a synch this morning that made my head spin: When I awoke this morning, and for the first 15 minutes or so after getting out of bed, the words "apis cerana" kept repeating themselves in my head. It was like an earworm--I couldn't stop hearing that phrase. I had no idea what it meant; I know that Apis is the genus for honeybees, but I'd never heard of the species A. cerana. I didn't even know if the phrase was referring to bees, or to something different--for all I knew, it was gibberish. I didn't even know how to spell it; I could only guess. I had to go run some early-morning errands, and by the time I got home I wasn't hearing that phrase anymore. In fact, I'd almost forgotten it. Then I got online, and realized that one of the members of a community I participate in uses the posting handle apis_cerana. But even as I recognized the name as my earworm, I knew it had nothing to do with that person--it was the phrase itself that was important. So I googled it. Apis cerana is the Asiatic, or Indian Honeybee. It's native to Southeast Asia, to Japan, to India, and to the Himalayan countries--including Tibet. I mention Tibet, because that bit of information jumped right out at me. I have recently started reading a lot about Tibet, and Tibetan Buddhism. I keep finding books on those subjects for free, or very cheaply, with absolutely no effort on my part. They just seem to show up, like stray cats--I found a copy of the Dalai Lama's autobiography sitting on top of my recycling bin in the alley last week (which was, now that I think of it, a hilariously apt place to find it). I seem to be a magnet for books on the subject right now. But the kicker? My given name means "honeybee." So I'm taking this as a sign that I'm moving in the right direction. I'm also taking it as a sign that the universe (or who-/whatever is at work here) has a wonderfully sly sense of humor.