Sweet......both the honey and Corbin

One of the gifts I received this Christmas has renewed my interest in an idea and plan I have for "The Gear". My daughter in law gave me a gift tin with tea, cornbread mix, and a container of honey.
The honey just wasn't any old honey. It was honey collected by her young nephew Corbin. Seems Corbin has become an entrepreneur of sorts. He is now a beekeeper.The honey has an excellent taste and a very nice color. I think this is just a great idea for a young kid. Not only does he get satisfaction from a job well done, but he also gains knowledge and life experience. Knowledge in knowing that honey isn't just bought at the store but is actually made by honey bees. Also that there is a direct correlation between bees, blossoms, and fruit. Bees are dependent on blossoms and blossoms are dependent on bees for pollination and the production of fruit. I understand that in the U.S. most of our indigenous fruits and vegetables are only able to be pollinated by honey bees, unlike fruits and veggies from the rest of the world where pollination from wind, etc is viable. He'll also gain experience with money.

I think one of the greatest lessons you can teach a child is that money does not grow on trees but is earned by working for it. If you want money, you earn it by working (chores, job) or fulfilling a predetermined goal (excellent grades, though I never paid for report cards). Our son was told his job was to get excellent grades and participate in his extracurricular activities such as tennis, shooting, and helping his father with his auto racing. He also had a bank account at a very young age and learned the value of saving even small amounts of money. When he was young I put all my pennies in a jar. He would put them in penny rolls and deposit them in his bank account. Over the years the money accumulated along with deposits of birthday money etc. I also deposited $15 a week into a credit union account in his name. Several times we withdrew money and he started a mutual fund account. I continued to put $15 a week into the account until he graduated from college, had a job, and was purchasing his own home. When we closed the account, it had $3000 in it. The money helped with his closing costs.

So I think this winter I will purchase a few beekeeping books and start acquiring the needed materials to start my own colony. My fruits trees will benefit from having a colony or two of honeybees and we will benefit from from having our own honey.

I just hope my honey is as sweet as Corbin.