The old truth that a shared work is halved, and a shared joy is doubled, is put into action. The season of Teeme Ära is here! Estonians want to do some common good, contribute, spend time together and improve their surroundings at the same time. This has developed to be a concept of the Day of Civil Actions (http://www.teemeara.ee/en). My respect well deserved.
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This year the official Teeme Ära – bee day is May 7th, but we took a false start already and cleaned the garden of Loomemajanduskeskus. It was a great fun and one effective charring! The input of the people resulted as a refreshed, clean park, and everybody got fresh air, red cheeks, shared laughter and lemonade (!!!) in return. Ideas and opinions were shared, maybe some found even new friends. We should remember to think that the effort we make for the community is not a sacrifice, something taken away from us, but something that we receive back multiplied.
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Bees are a natural –and useful- way to strengthen the feeling of belonging, to enhance the spirit of the community and to, well, as simple as it is, get things done! And think about it: in a country size of Estonia, last year on the Teeme Ära day there were more than a thousand bees! To me this tells also that the people have a will, maybe even a need to do things together, for the shared good and joy. This should be done even more!
Or how do you feel about it? Enjoy grabbing the rake, pushing the wheelbarrow or serving soup outside? Teeme Ära also collects the stories and experiences people have had in bees, so approach them through the website if you feel like sharing yours. And approach bees! I find the whole concept very exciting and inspiring, but there’s still one thing that puzzles me. The straight translation of Teeme Ära is something like “let’s do it” or “just do it”, but in my opinion neither of those fully describes what’s going on in the bees here. There’s also the spirit to catch. And that’s something very Estonian, and impossible to translate. Only experiencing it opens the phrase for you.
how inspiring that Estonians and a certain Finn don't use the city but add to its wealth. Wishing to do yard work is foreign to me. Of course it is! It is Estonian! So nice. My rake is ready for some action and Lemonade)
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