A Christmas Wish For All

Reader Contribution by Christy Hemenway
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Beekeeping.

Just what IS beekeeping? Is it art? Is it science? Is it magic? It’s notoriously difficult to define. Is it a hobby? Is it a habit? Is it an obsession? Just what is it?

And what about those funny little bugs? Just what is it about bees? They sting, yes, so it’s prudent to be cautious when you’re around them, but can it be true that they only sting when they’re defending something? Who knew? And it’s a kamikaze mission, that once-in- a-lifetime sting of a honeybee. They never do it frivolously — it’s a life or death proposition for the honeybee.

Yet beekeepers can be seen standing, sitting, lounging in the vicinity of their hives for hours, and just watching. That’s it, just watching the bees flying in and out of the hive. It’s mesmerizing. It’s as if we think that if we watch long enough, we’re going to figure out their secret.

Truly, what we humans really know about honeybees is pretty limited. We cannot see inside the hive, we cannot see inside their minds, we barely even believe in a concept as advanced as a hive mind or a holistic super organism.

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