I took deep, calming breaths, and put one foot in front of the other. All around me was a droning buzz and the feeling of bees landing on me sending signals of “get out of here!” to my brain.They weren’t stinging, and they wouldn’t sting, unless I became a ‘threat’ but the sound and feeling still got my hackles up even after four times of doing this.Enough stings would kill me…again. And the only protection I had was bundled up rags shoved under my clothes to hopefully blunt the worst of it.So I persevered, approaching the hive.I clambered onto the rock beside the frame I had built to keep the hive box off the ground, and carefully reached for the lid. I pulled on it once, and felt a small surge of panic as it didn’t budge…. But I kept it up. With slow, even pressure, I felt it start to lift, a little bit of wax probably in the way.The bees buzzed around me.Slowly, painstakingly slowly, the lid rose into the air. I held my breath the entire time, finally being able to see into the box—And I beheld gold.Golden comb, filled with honey.Slowly, a grin formed on my face, as I thought of the prices for (...)