Change is hard, change is scary, yet change can be so rewarding. I have come to the changing year, the challenge year, the year that makes or breaks businesses, the year that asks if you can do it or if you should give up.
This is technically year 3 for Holmes Honey & Fresh Cut Flowers. The ideas, the plans, and the seeds for this business were all planted in 2021. This was in the middle of the pandemic, when we were home building treehouses and getting to know this land that was now ours. It was a lot to take on, an overwhelming challenge that we were excited to begin.
The bees were the first to come! We bought the bees, hired someone to maintain them and harvest the honey. We were so excited to have this going and see what all this was about. Well, this was our first lesson and change of the business. This person did not do a stellar job, the hives were missing essential pieces to survive and we did not get the amount of honey we had anticipated. Were we frustrated? Yes! Were we ready to change to keep this going? You betcha!
I NEVER, I mean NEVER, thought I would become a beekeeper, lol! We had to quickly change and pivot the plans as we were now taking on the entire bee production on our own. This also was a no husband change, as Shane is allergic to wasps and hornets and has the epi pen to prove it. Because of his strong reactions to venomous stings, we were advised to keep him away from the bees, so this was landing all on me. We're so lucky that we had a friend who stepped in to assist me in this process and I am extremely grateful for his advice and wisdom. So I ordered the suit, I read the books, and I started to understand bees, queens, hives and honey! I learned a lot, so much that I became more and more confident in my choices for the bees. This change was good, but again came with challenges.
Then came the flowers! I decided that I wanted a cut flower garden for myself. This would be great for the bees and bring a little joy to us in the process. Well, change of plans, a surgery for me right at the end of the school year, just when the garden needs you the most, had me not quite up for all I had planned. That summer I enjoyed the flowers for me, I let the weeds go, I put flowers on every flat surface I could and then gifted even more. Then we thought, what if we started to share the flowers with the community? Change, and the best change we could have made! The flower side of the business allowed my hands-on, creative side to shine! Sharing flowers at the market and our little stand allowed our business to grow and change.
But now we are in year 3, some call it the Valley of Death! The year that things need to shift and change to either grow the business and achieve goals or realize maybe we bit off too much than we can chew, and it is time to hang up our boots. Well, I have decided we are not getting stuck in the Valley of Death! LOL! We are climbing out and trying new and scary things. This year I am growing seeds that are "difficult"! I am a little intimidated, but have my fingers crossed that my knowledge (and a little luck) will help these new blooms to flourish. I am going to be hosting classes, hopefully on the property starting this Summer! I will be in more classrooms, summer camps and groups than I have been in the past year! We will have more hives this year and will be on our way for an ag tax credit!!! If you can't tell by my over use of exclamation points, I am very excited for all these challenges and more that we know will come!!! This all sounds a little ranunculus (enjoying the flowers puns?) but we are ready for it and can't wait to see what challenges come our way this year! #morein2024
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