I took my first beekeeping class yesterday.  One finger bears a slightly puffy sting to prove it.  (She must have been trapped outside my glove and left her stinger when I pulled them off, poor dear).  I have been wanting to learn more about bees for years and we bought this house with a backyard hive in mind.  I was lucky to find a great teacher right around the corner from us in Brooklyn.  Mickey Beaman comes from three generations of keepers and is engaging and slightly crazy enough to make an enthusiastic and patient teacher.  I’d started reading The Beekeeper’s Bible before the class and I can’t put it down.  I have used it as bedtime reading for the kids…It is a beautiful book about the history, behavior and care of bees and is full of beautiful illustrations and recipes.  Honeybee Democracy by Thomas D. Seeley is another amazing peek inside the collective of the hive.  Standing outside the entrance to the hive yesterday and watching the flurry of activity made me want to get to know these creatures.  We have such a lot to learn before we order any of the supplies from the catalog but I am excited to be at the start of a new project!   I am dreaming of the buzz and honey for our tea and of teaching the kids about the magic of bees.