North Carolinian writer Thomas Wolfe
said that
“only the dead know Brooklyn.”
I take this to mean that no matter how
long you’re there, you can never fully comprehend all that the borough has to
offer. I quote Thomas Wolfe because he is probably North Carolina’s most famous
writer, but also because he went to UNC and used some of his time there to go
to Brooklyn to advance his career. He and I are kindred spirits, separated by
almost a century but both taken by the Tarheel zeal for intellectual pursuit to
America’s greatest city.
Of course Thomas Wolfe went on to
publish many collections of short stories and influence countless future
writers (including my best friend Maria, who earned the prestigious creative
writing scholarship that bears his name), and I would lucky to achieve half his
success. I hope that this research, modest as it will be, will investigate
questions I have about urban food systems, community involvement in food, and
the public’s blooming interest in their under-credited pollinators. I hope that
this project answer those questions, but more importantly, lead to many more
questions. It is important that we never stop looking for more questions to
answer and that we keep open minds to everything; after all, it’s because of
questions and open minds that millions of bees now call New York City home.
