Wasp

I saw a wasp hovering around inside the balcony doors of my bedroom two days ago. Thought nothing of it. But last night, as I was closing the blinds, I found a wasp nest, like a ball of clay, hanging from the top of the door frame. It was frighteningly disturbing.

My town is a town of spiders, and wasps balance the spiders; but a nest inside the house must come down. Wasps are not creatures that I ever spared a moment's attention; still, I knew this � that the nest had to come down.

It was well past midnight and, in spite of my fright, something about the quietness and stillness of the hour penetrated my mind. This would be the best time for such an enterprise. I got a tin can, masking tape, some cardboard, and my athame-to-be and chipped it from the lintel.

Then I googled the subject and learned this was the thing to do after all for a small, visible nest (i.e., not in the walls, ceiling, or underground) and that night was best suited for the activity. Wasps are made drowsy and less likely to attack. What I did not guess was that wasps can chew through anything and if a repellent is not applied, they can return. It is recommended that you freeze your trappings for 24 hours. Also, mint-oil based repellents are as satisfactory as the toxic ones. I put the can in the freezer and applied a mint-oil repellent to the site where it was.

In the language of the tarot, this was what one would call 'playing The Fool' � a bout of 'mystical cleverness bereft of reason' (Wikipedia). Primal instinct is informative; it does not make you informed. Yet it can lead you to becoming informed.

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My search turned up other things. Wasps are the harbingers of summer and there are a number of traditional omens associated with them. From the Encyclopedia of Superstitions, Folklore, and the Occult Sciences of the World (Cora Linn Daniels and Dr. C.M. Stevans; University Press of the Pacific; Honolulu, HI; 1903):

• If the first wasps of the season are seen in your house before you've seen a bee, it's a sign that you are about to form unpleasant acquaintances. If you see a bee first, though, the acquaintance will be pleasant.
• It's lucky to kill the first wasp of the season; you will have good luck and best your foes.
• If a wasp stings you, your foes will get the advantage of you.
• A wasp nest on or near the house brings good luck.
• Wasps build in the houses of the unthrifty and indicate the inhabitants will come to want.
• A wasp nest in your house is a sign that you will not live there long.

The last there are somewhat obvious: a wasp nest in your ceiling, unbeknownst, can grow large and cause it to collapse. The portents for acquaintances and foes are interesting, however.

I am hoping for good luck, of course.

July 1, 2008