The agriturismo in Menfi was heaven; it was what I pictured when I pictured a vacation in Sicily.

I sat one morning, just after getting up, with a double espresso on the terrace overlooking the vineyards and olive trees. It was the only morning on the trip where I threw a sweatshirt over my pajama pants and took my morning coffee solo like that - because I could. There was an herb garden at my feet.

Paradise. Except for the threat of bees, which was a real one. They were ever present. Of course they love it here, too, I thought. Of course they are crucial to this thriving ecosystem.

I couldn’t, however, even with all this poetry of nature, in my head and visible all around, convince myself to completely relax and not be afraid of them. We could coexist, but I knew who was in charge.