Zaru tat-Tikka and the Beehive Box
Zaru tat-Tikka, along with his siblings, would often run with their father in the fields of Wied Għomor, where their father worked tirelessly producing honey for the area. Zaru, who was the middle child among the four siblings, learned well his father’s craft and maintained this knowledge alive for many years.
In those times, honey was used for everything—even doctors prescribed it as medicine. Zaru tat-Tikka was known by this name because, as a child, a bee had stung him and left a mark on his cheek. Some say this was a curse, but it is hard to say for sure nowadays.
Once, while Zaru was opening the beehive boxes that he himself had made—or rather, hollowed out, since before wooden boxes were used, hollowed trunks were also utilized to carry wine bottles—
It is told with some humor that as he was walking to tend his bees, he stubbed his foot under a tree…
Zaru and the Buzzing Bees
Zaru tat-Tikka had a bee on his face,
It left a big mark—a very strange place!
He ran through the fields with a funny little hop,
Trying to shake that pesky bee off his top.
He made beehive boxes, wooden and neat,
But one day he stumbled and fell on his feet!
Under a tree, oh what a surprise—
A bee buzzed by, right into his eyes!
He danced and he twirled, with a jump and a shout,
The bees all around were laughing about!
“Zaru,” they said, “you’re our favorite guy,
Even if you trip and fall in the rye!”
So next time you see a bee on your nose,
Don’t panic or run—strike a funny pose!
Because Zaru and bees will always agree:
Life’s just more fun with a little bit of bee-hee!
