Everyone knows that bees love honey. The bears know it and the bees know it. That's why bees build their hives way high up in the tops of trees. They want to make it as difficult for the bears to reach as possible.

Little Colin didn't know about bees. His mama hadn't taught him yet, so when he found a beehive on the ground, surrounded by sunflowers, he toddled over to it.

The bees, frantic at seeing a bear, buzzed around him, warning him to stay away.

Colin sat among the flowers. He sniffed them and held them in his paws. He sat there for hours. The bees, unsure of what he was doing, went on their business, flying around him now and then to remind him they were watching him.

Every day Colin went to the flower patch. After a few visits, the bees left him alone. They knew he didn't want to hurt them or raid their beehive for honey.

One morning Colins mama took him for a walk. “Look up there, Colin. Way up in the top of that tree is a beehive. See?”

The bear cub looked up. “What's in a beehive, Mama?”

“Honey. Bears love honey. That's why I'm going to climb the tree and knock the beehive down. We can eat all the honey.”

“What about the bees? Is that their home? Are we knocking down their home?” Colin gazed at his mama. “I don't want to hurt the bees.”

“But we're bears, Colin. This is what we do. We knock down beehives and eat the honey.” Mama sighed with frustration.

“I'm not going to eat honey. I'm not going to knock down the beehive. I'll eat berries and nuts instead.” Colin frowned and went off into the woods. He saw the flower garden and sat down in it. He looked at the beehive and the bees. “Mama said I should knock your beehive over and take your honey, but I'm not going to.”

The bees, upon hearing Colin's words, were so grateful to him that every day when he came to visit, they brought him out a piece of honeycomb. “Buzz, buzz. Since you are kind to us, we'll be kind to you.”

Colin didn't tell his mama about the honey. It was his secret.