Kevin had already made his Halloween costume with his mom and helped his dad decorate their house. He was excited about how much candy he would collect. But one house on his street didn’t have any decorations, and that kept bothering him. He didn’t understand why someone wouldn’t celebrate Halloween, so he thought maybe they needed help.
Halloween was almost here, and the entire neighborhood was buzzing with excitement. Every yard seemed to be trying to be the scariest one around.
There were pumpkins with big, jagged smiles all along the sidewalks. Plastic skeletons hung from tree branches, and fake cobwebs covered porches.
The air smelled like dry leaves and candy, and eleven-year-old Kevin could feel his heart racing with excitement.
Halloween was Kevin’s favorite day of the year, a time when anyone could be whatever they wanted. He loved how everything changed for that one magical night.
As he walked down the street, he smiled, looking at the glowing jack-o’-lanterns and spooky ghosts decorating the houses. Some homes even played creepy sounds like witches’ laughter and creaking doors.
But something different caught his eye as he went farther down the street. One house was dark and plain, with no decorations at all. It was Mrs. Kimbly’s house.
Mrs. Kimbly was an older woman who lived alone. Kevin had helped her before, mowing her lawn in summer and shoveling snow in winter, but she rarely said much. Her undecorated house seemed out of place in the festive neighborhood.
Kevin felt bad that her house had no Halloween spirit. He thought maybe she needed help with the decorations. Determined, he crossed the street and knocked on her door.
When Mrs. Kimbly answered, her face showed annoyance. “What do you want, Kevin?” she asked in a gruff voice.
“I noticed you don’t have any Halloween decorations. I could help you put some up, if you’d like,” Kevin offered.
Mrs. Kimbly frowned. “I don’t need decorations, and I don’t need help,” she said sharply before slamming the door.
Kevin was surprised. How could anyone hate Halloween so much? He didn’t want her house to be a target for pranks, like kids throwing toilet paper, so he came up with a plan.
At home, Kevin told his mom, Sarah, about Mrs. Kimbly’s undecorated house and how she had slammed the door in his face. His mom suggested leaving her alone, explaining that people might have reasons for not celebrating.
But Kevin didn’t think Mrs. Kimbly hated Halloween—she seemed lonely. So, he decided to help anyway.
He gathered all the Halloween decorations he could find, including his favorite pumpkin, and hurried back to Mrs. Kimbly’s house. He carefully hung lights and placed pumpkins on her porch. As he finished, the front door opened, and Mrs. Kimbly stormed out, furious.
“I told you not to decorate my house!” she yelled. She grabbed Kevin’s carved pumpkin and smashed it on the ground. Kevin was shocked and hurt, but he whispered, “I just wanted to help,” before running home.
That night, Kevin put on his vampire costume, but he couldn’t enjoy Halloween. He was worried about Mrs. Kimbly’s house being pranked. So, he returned to her house and sat on her porch, handing out candy from his own bag to trick-or-treaters, explaining that Mrs. Kimbly wasn’t home.
As he sat alone, the door creaked open. Mrs. Kimbly stepped out, her expression softer this time.
“What are you doing here, Kevin?” she asked quietly.
“I didn’t want anyone to mess with your house,” Kevin explained. “I thought I could help.”
Mrs. Kimbly sighed and sat beside him. She admitted that Halloween was hard for her because it reminded her of how alone she was. She had no family to share it with.
Kevin understood now. “You don’t have to be alone,” he said. “You can celebrate with the rest of us.”
Mrs. Kimbly smiled sadly and thanked Kevin for his kindness. She even apologized for smashing his pumpkin. Kevin promised to bring another one so they could carve it together.
For the first time in years, Mrs. Kimbly felt the warmth of Halloween again, thanks to the caring heart of one determined boy.
High fives to Morgan Freeman for transforming his ranch into a 124-acre honeybee sanctuary.
In an attempt to avert impending tragedy, Morgan Freeman has given honeybees access to his farm.
The world’s most beloved storyteller aspires to provide a fresh narrative for the declining honeybee population by granting them access to his 124 acres of property. In 2014, the 81-year-old actor turned his Mississippi property into a bee sanctuary after taking up beekeeping as a pastime. He planted acre upon acre of bee-attracting plants, such as clover, lavender, and magnolia trees, and brought in 26 bee hives from Arkansas.
He gave the bees sugar water to help them get used to their new habitat, and he claims that even though he hasn’t worn a cap or protective suit, he has never been stung. Freeman’s mission is to assist in repopulating the declining honeybee population; he does not collect honey from the bees or interfere with their hives.
Building a bee sanctuary, according to Freeman, is his way of contributing to the reconstruction of “the foundation of the growth of the planet.”
In a 2016 Larry King Live interview, Freeman described his motivation for converting his property into a haven for honeybees.
“Bee colonies have been losing a great deal, especially in this nation,” he informed King. “To the point where scientists are now warning that this is dangerous.”
Shortly after moving the hives to his property in 2014, Freeman spoke with Jimmy Fallon about his passion of beekeeping. “There is a concerted effort for bringing bees back onto the planet,” he added. “I believe they are the basis for the planet’s growth, the vegetation, but we are unaware of this.”
Honeybees and other insects are essential to human crop pollination. The loss of pollinators will negatively impact our food supply. Losing the bee population could have catastrophic effects on life as we know it.
Why do bees go extinct? There are several solutions, and a lot of them include human interference.
In a poll released last year by Auburn University and University of Maryland, American beekeepers reported that 40 percent of their colonies had collapsed the year before, a 33% rise from the year before. There are several different causes for the die-off.
For the past ten or so years, some bee species have been affected by colony collapse disorder. Numerous potential explanations have been proposed by scientists, including pesticides, environmental stressors, a lack of genetic variation within colonies, and mite infestations.
The survey’s researchers speculate that bees could be another victim of climate change. The weather and temperature have an impact on bee food and forage, according to Geoffrey Williams, an assistant professor at Auburn, who spoke to Bloomberg. It should be rather evident that bees that are already on the verge of collapse will fare less well in the event of a sudden and drastic change in the weather.
Moreover, pesticides are at fault. Commonly employed in agricultural regions, neonicotinoid pesticides kill bees and prevent them from reproducing. According to scientists, these chemicals gradually reduce bee populations and are especially hazardous to queen bees, which has an impact on bee populations over time.
Bravo to Freeman for building a wholesome haven for honeybees. We all have a responsibility to the environment, and every action we take to safeguard the environment has an impact.
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