Becoming a Beekeeper - Honeybee: Lessons from an Accidental Beekeeper - page 16

iron and antioxidants. Also, the honey would have qualities of the plant whose flowers
the bees took nectar from—in this case, buckwheat. One gentleman beekeeper noticed
my interest in all the honey samples and offered me one of the three bottles he'd taken
from the table. I accepted it with great pleasure.
“You'renewhere,aren'tyou?”hesaid.WhenIrepliedthatIwas,hesaid,“Youkeep
coming here, and you'll learn a lot about bees. And make some new friends.”
Before the night was over, I ran into Mr. B, who introduced me to even more bee-
keeping friends. “New-bee” is the name used to describe beginner beekeepers, and
that's how I was referred to. I was invited to sign up as a club member and to attend a
hive inspection that coming Saturday. Without hesitation, I accepted the invitation and
wrote down the address.
My first beekeeping meeting was like opening a door into a whole new world that
I had no idea existed. Looking back, the bee club was like a secret society, complete
with its own meetings and even its own vocabulary. Through the BYBA, I would meet
people from all walks of life, but who all shared a passion for bees. They would teach
me how to manage my honeybees and how to harvest and bottle my honey. And they
would be there for me as lifelong mentors, making me a better beekeeper. I went to bee
meetings, including some in other cities, for my entire first year of beekeeping. It was
not long before I became more involved in the organization, but it wasn't until after I
began serving on the board of directors that I learned my Mr. B was a past president.