It was nearly silent except for a gentle hum . I carefully lifted the lid off the box , and peered inside . Thousands of bees buzzed quietly ; not a single one flew at my veil or swarmed the space between us . I couldn ’ t believe how calm they were ! I opened up my beehive and took my shiny new hive tool out of its plastic packaging .
After watching the bees for a few more moments , and knowing I couldn ’ t procrastinate any longer , I placed my hive tool under the edge of one of the frames , ever so slowly working it from the box . I took the edge of the frame in my fingertips and moved the tool to the other end of the frame , slowly elevating the other side . When I had the frame in my hands , I delicately extracted it from the box , marveling at the hundreds and perhaps
thousand bees on that frame .
They moved about , doing their busy bee business as I carried the frame a few inches to the new hive , and lowered it into place . I don ’ t think I could have been more careful had I been carrying a frame of plutonium . I repeated this slow and cautious transfer four more times , until all five frames were in the new hive , then looked into the supposedly “ empty ” box .
There were still loads of bees inside . I had read that you simply overturn the nuc box and shake it into the new hive . This sounded ludicrous , but I did as instructed , and to my surprise , the bees wanted little to do with me , and after a few seconds of flurrying around , simply buzzed their way into the new hive . I watched in awe for another minute , my eyes slowly moving
across the top of the frames and following the activity of the bees . Each was focused on its own business , moving about their new home . The trip to this new home was over , and I was filled with delight . I set the lid in place and stepped back to marvel in my accomplishment : I was officially a beekeeper .
Catie DeLuca was raised in Washington , D . C . She left the area to complete her education , but has since returned , living in nearby cities including Frederick , Arlington and Bethesda . She currently works as a small animal veterinarian in Northwest D . C .. In 2020 , as the pandemic loomed , she left the Bethesda for the fresh air of Darnestown , where she now lives with her partner , Nadine , two dogs , Kansas and Warren Peace , a cat named One-Eyed Jack , and two colonies of honeybees .
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