BEE KEEPERS

My son Alex and I were sitting on the front porch enjoying a little sun when my husband Steven came out to join us. “What a beautiful day!” he said as he leaned on the railing. He looked down at a dandelion trying to grow in a crack in the sidewalk. “Oh, you have to go.” he said as he leaned down to pull it out.

“No! Don't!” I cried. “It's the first dandelion of the season!”

“I know and I want to catch it before it turns into a puffball and blows seeds all over our yard!” Steven pulled it out by it's root and held it up for me to see.

“But they say those are the first flowers the bees need.” I sighed.

“Oh, speaking of bees...” he tossed the dandelion over the railing then looked back at me. “I saw a bee house for sale at Costco.”

“Bee house?” I was a little skeptical. “I'm not a big fan of getting stung.”

“You were just trying to feed them dandelions,” Steven shook his head. “but you don't want to give them a house?”

I shrugged my shoulders as I picked up my phone and Googled Costco bee house. “Hey! Here it is!” I turned my phone around for Alex to see. “It looks like a cute little barn!” I began scrolling through the site. “It attracts the Mason bee.” I looked over at Steven. “They say they're gentle and non-aggressive!”

“See, I told you.” Steven said.

I looked over at Alex and smiled. “I'm going to be a beekeeper!” I cried.

“Well, that's not entirely true.” Steven shook his head.

“What do you mean?” I was confused. “We're getting bees, so I'm going to be a beekeeper.”

“We're not actually getting bees.” He leaned back on the railing. “We're getting a bee house to attract the bees.”

I shook my head. “Okay, fine. But once the bees come then I'll be one, right?”

Steven shook his head again. “Nope. Still won't be one.”

“Oh, come on!”

Now it was Alex's turn to show me his phone. “I just Googled beekeeper.”

I took his phone from him. “A beekeeper keeps bees in order to collect their honey and other products that the hive produce like beeswax and bee and flower pollen.” I handed him back his phone. “So what do the Mason bees do?”

“They're spring pollinators.” Steven was reading from Google too.

“So isn't that what honey bees do?”

“Yes, but they're also protecting a hive so they can get aggressive.”

“Nope, don't want that.” Alex chimed in.

“Okay, fine.” I sighed. “I won't be able to call myself a beekeeper.”

“You're helping the bee population. Isn't that enough?” Steven laughed.

“I guess.” I sighed.

“You can call yourself an environmentalist.” Alex suggested. “You are helping them.”

I thought about that for a moment.

“Or the manager of a bee flophouse.” Steven added.

I looked over at Steven. “Thanks, but I think I'll go with environmentalist.”

Steven shrugged his shoulder. “Suit yourself.”