Tag Archives: animism

Telling the Bees

LH: In my families old farm in the Midwest, whenever a family member passed away someone had to go out to the backyard and ‘tell the bees’. You have to knock on each hive and whisper the name of the person who died. If you don’t tell them, the bees,

Context: The informant is a close friend, and he learned this folklore through ancestral tradition through the maternal line, originating from English Immigrants who settled in the Midwest. We were disscssing ecology for another class when he told me this story. To the informant, this custom represents a deep “ecological contract” in which his family is keeping the bees in the loop because they regard them as family due to their facilitation of plant life. Its an honor code as they believe the bees deserve to be a part of the mourning process.

Analysis: Telling the bees is a profound example of a folk custom that illustrates animism, the attribution of living should to plants, inanimate objects, and animals. The ritual serves a vital functioning purpose in the grieving process: it forces the bereaved to step outside the domestic sphere and engage with the natural world, providing a structures, meditative task during a time of emotional chaos. Historically, this piece of folklore responded to the high stakes of rural survival. The loss of bee colonies is a significant economic blow, highlighting how some folklore practices arise out of necessity,

“Tabi Tabi Po Apo” – Filipino Superstition

Nationality: Filipino
Age: 28
Occupation: Prosthetist Orthotists
Residence: Atlanta, Georgia
Language: English

Text:

“Tabi tabi po apo” is roughly Filipino slang for “excuse me.”

It’s the belief that you must say excuse me before you pee on the side of the road.

Context:

The performer grew up in Bicol, Philippines which is a rural southern province of Luzon. He grew up in an impoverished area and played outside with with the neighborhood kids almost everyday.

“Growing up, we were told by our lolo and lola. When you play around the trees or bushes or plants, or just nature, where there are no walking paths, you have to respect the elders of nature. It’s like when you go to the forest right, you have to respect nature and all the things that you don’t see like spirits or children in the forest. It’s bad karma and can attract vengeful spirits like if you cross in their territory they become territorial and put a curse on you.”

Analysis:

“Apo” is a respectful term which is similar to saying “ma’am” or “sir” and in this case applies to spirits. It’s respect for the “unseen” spiritual world and nature. The nature respect could be tied to folk Catholicism (a blend between Catholicism and superstition). 80-90% of Filipinos are Catholic as the Spanish colonized and brought over the religion in the 1500s, and so many of their indigenous beliefs mixed with Caloic ones, making this phrase widely accepted across generations.

Another practical reason for the phrase’s popularity, especially in more rural or less developed areas, is the Philippines’ abundant vegetation and loosely defined land boundaries. In communities like where the performer grew up, where peeing outdoors is common, especially for children, saying “tabi tabi po, apo” is also a way to teach mindfulness and caution when interacting with the natural world—both physically and spiritually.