Covered in yellow jackets ...- H

...of the insect variety. Yellow jackets are wasps and so are quite a bit more aggressive than bees, I'm told. I don't know very much about bees and wasps. I've never been stung before today.

So, I took my students on a field trip to the nature preserve near our school. We're taking part in a tree study which involves taking measurements of the trees in the park. One of my students stepped on a nest (b/c yellow jackets nest in the ground rather than building paper nests that hang) which of course enraged the whole wasp community, and they proceeded to swarm her. She must have been covered with a hundred wasps. Luckily, she was wearing a jacket and so was able to throw off most of the wasps with her jacket. She had some long thick locks though, and several were lingering within. She sustained more than a dozen stings, and she said they seemed to be mostly on her head. Poor girl! She wasn't allergic to them (THANKFULLY!) but was in pain as the stings began to swell.

Here's what she said about the whole thing. "Well, I guess it's a good experience." Not a hint of sarcasm or bitterness, just sweetness.