“Yes, Mom.” Cooper’s tone was edged with impatience. “But the bees collected the pollen and made the honey in the springtime. So that honey was different than summer honey.”
“Interesting. Can the bees really work fast enough to already have honey ready to harvest?” Jewel set the last plate in the dishwasher.
“Yeah. Now that the lavender is in full bloom, the bees havelots of pollen and can produce lots more honey. Better quality too.”
Jewel paused to study her daughter. “How do you know all this?”
“From the book Grandpa gave me to read. Plus,” she said, lowering her voice, “I took a peek at a comb yesterday, and it looked pretty full.”
“Did you tell Grandpa?”
“Not yet. I was afraid he might try to hobble out there and trip over his cane and turn it into a big mess.”
“Good thinking.”
“But I’m not sure I should do it alone.” Cooper frowned. “I don’t want to do it wrong.”
“Don’t you think the honey can wait?”
“I guess.”
“Well, I’d offer to help you, Coop, but the bees scare me. And I’m worried they’ll sense my fear and get all excited.”
“Grandma offered to help too. She’s done it with Grandpa before. But she said her last time was last summer. And he could tell her what to do because his brain was working better then.” Cooper put the milk carton away. “I feel like she’s not so comfortable with it now. Although she said she’d get the honey in the jars and label them and all that, like she usually does. And maybe we can even start selling it in town.”
“So does she think it’s time to harvest now?”
“She said their first summer harvest was about this time last year. Plus, it’s warmer than usual. That means more pollen and more honey.”
Jewel appreciated her daughter’s enthusiasm and knowledge, but she still felt uneasy about Cooper removing honey from the hives ... possibly being attacked by bees. She didn’t want to be a helicopter mom, but it was unnerving. “Do you think it could wait a few days? I mean, Grandpa’s healing up pretty fast. He could be well in another day or two. Then he could help.”
“I guess.”
“Then please wait.” Jewel frowned. “But tell me the truth. DidGrandpareallyunderstand what he was doing the last time? He didn’t get confused or anything? I know there are a lot of steps. What if he messes one up?”
Cooper shrugged. “He seemed okay to me. And I’ve been reading about it and looking up videos on YouTube. I honestly think I could do it by myself, but having an extra set of hands would make it lots easier. I already asked Anna, but she’s allergic to bees. Can you imagine being allergic to bees? I’d hate that.”
Jewel patted Cooper’s shoulder. “Well, I’m really impressed by how smart you are about all this bee biz. But I’d still appreciate it if you waited. I bet Grandpa would too. He probably enjoys harvesting honey.”
Cooper nodded. “Yeah. Okay, I’ll wait.” She picked up the cooling tray she’d been rinsing. “Guess I’ll go set this up before it gets too warm out.”
Jewel was just closing the dishwasher when her mom came into the kitchen, letting out a long sigh.
“Something wrong?”
Mom gave a forced-looking smile. “Just your dad. Up to his tricks.”
“What’s he done now?”
“I made the mistake of organizing his dresser for him.”
“Why is that a mistake?”
Mom poured herself a cup of coffee and sat down. “Probably because I labeled the drawers. I get so tired of trying to hunt down his socks and T-shirts and boxers after he rearranges everything. I thought if I labeled the drawers, it might help maintain some order. Then I put all his clean laundry in the right places. I hoped it would keep him from constantly asking me where something was.”
“Seems like a good idea to me.”
Mom sipped her coffee, then shook her head. “Nope.”
