A Taste of Honey
Of all the nectar that bees collect from flowers, only about a third is actually converted into honey. In order to produce just one pound of honey, bees have altogether to collect nectar from 2 million flowers. This involves approximately 3 million flights over an aggregate distance of 50,000 miles. Only when the required amount of nectar has been collected does the process of honey-making begin.
In its initial state, nectar is a liquid of roughly the same consistency as water. Bees’ wings have been designed to act as fans which vapourize the excess liquid. When this has been removed, a sweet liquid remains, which the bees suck. The mouths of the bees contain a certain type of gland, which automatically transforms the sweet liquid matter into honey. Their honey prepared, the bees now store it in their hives in specially formed holes made out of wax. All this involves an enormous amount of work by other bees. The safety and effectiveness of this method of storage is as complete as any packaging in which humans encase honey. Only when the honey is needed for human consumption does it have to be taken from the hives.
Numerous other arrangements of this kind could have been made for the preparation of honey. God is able to do all things: He could have brought honey into being by uttering a magic word; He could have caused it to issue from the ground, as He has done with water. But for the preparation of honey He has ordained this other, highly evolved and perfect system. This is so that man may take heed and realize the manner in which God has created the universe, thus learning the laws and methods he must follow if he is to be successful in this world.
If we are to sum up the method employed by bees in the preparation of honey, we might say that it is a method involving perfect planning. This same method is to be followed by man. For man to achieve any worthwhile aim in life, he has to work towards it in a planned, methodical way. This is the only way to be successful in one’s aims. What applies to the bees applies also to mankind.
