My girl is the world’s youngest beekeeper!
Here, Annie Haggar, 36, from Canberra, shares the story in her own words.
Rubbing my bulging bump, I stood watching my hubby, Tony, 36, tending to our beehives.
I couldn’t help but smile as he tried to move the bees away from the honey.
Our love for gardening had got us interested in how bees helped the planet and we were keen to help play our part. So we’d recently taken a beekeeping course.
Afterwards, we’d bought all the gear, but in reality, we had no idea about what it would entail.
The suits, which were all-in-one white jumpsuits, complete with a plastic helmet that covered our faces to protect our eyes, were strange to wear at first.
But after our first stings, we had to wear them.
In January 2018, our daughter, Percy, was born.
And when she started walking at 12 months, we decided to show her the bees to get her interested.
‘That’s a bee,’ I said, showing her the hive from a safe distance.
She was fascinated as they flew in and out, from then on, she was obsessed. We taught her that their buzzing was nothing to fear.
She wanted us to draw bees for her to colour in.
Then, Percy muttered one of her first words.
‘Bee,’ she said.
We couldn’t believe it.
‘Good girl! That is a bee,’ we cried, almost in unison.
When she reached 23 months, we knew it was time our fearless daughter got a beekeeping suit.
It needed to be specially made it was that small!
‘Look what has arrived,’ I cooed as I began opening a large cardboard box.
A huge smile swept across her face. She looked so adorable.
‘I think you’re the world’s littlest beekeeper,’ I cried.
I felt so proud our passion had passed on to Percy.
She’d never been stung by a bee, but the suit would limit the chances.
The first time in her suit we thought she might be cautious, but she went up close and was even trying to put her head in the hive!
Now two, she helps us inspect the hives to make sure the bees are healthy.
She also checks how many eggs and how much honey they are producing.
We touch the bees to get them to move off the comb, and she loves gently moving them with her gloves on.
Best of all, she’s learning about the bees’ life cycle
and our planet. Without bees pollinating plants, many foods wouldn’t survive.
If we can teach kids from an early age to respect these precious creatures and that they’re not something to squish or kill, it will help change everyone’s perceptions.
Percy now has a sister, Dido, four months, and we hope Percy will show her the ropes when she’s old enough.
We want to create a buzz!
Charlotte Nisbet