“INTOXICATING! This is the only way I can describe the first time I pulled a frame of dripping honey comb from my hive,” says Michelle, who extracted her first honey this month. She is a participant in the Bee Group, composed of 17 Arab and Jewish women. The group was initiated by Sindyanna of Galilee and MAAN Workers Association last May. It is part of a wider net of  women’s groups that have sprung up under the guidance of Yossi Aud, a bee expert, who has recently formed a network known as Bees for Peace.

In biodynamic beekeeping, Yossi explains, honey is harvested with respect for and attentiveness to the needs of the bees. When there is an abundance of honey, he says, we take only a tenth of it to ourselves, leaving the rest for the bees. This is especially important as winter approaches, when the bees store the honey for their own survival.

Rabab Kabaha, from the village of Barta’a in the Triangle (a group of Arab villages in Israel), told us about her discussions with local bee keepers there. “All of them were very skeptical when I told them we are not feeding the bees with sugar. They couldn’t believe I would ever have honey, and look, my hive is full!”

Michelle is astonished by her produce. “Look at the amber colour! the sweet aroma and the rich, almost creamy texture of the most delicious nectar. All this transported me to a level of thankful ecstasy that lasted for days afterwards!”

Then she reflects: “Mother nature is so generous, so perfectly wise, knowing exactly what we need. To be a witness, an active participant in this most ancient process, the partaking of this medicinal elixir, is an honor and a privilege that I hope to develop and share with as many people as I can.”