I have mixed feelings when it comes to bugs.

When I was young, I would spend a month in the mountains of North Carolina at Camp Kahdalea, an all-girls wilderness sanctuary owned by two Louisiana natives, David and Anne Trufant. My summers sleeping in cabins with nothing more than screens for windows and doors far from sealed—and often just in a hammock in the woods—got me well-acquainted with all types of creepy crawlers, including a snake that once perched itself above our doorframe. 

There’s a misconception that people who enjoy spending time in nature also enjoy the company of bugs. Historically, for me, that has not been true. However, as a mom to two boys, I am slowly changing my tune.

My 2- and 4-year-old are obsessed with bugs, and especially a kid-focused documentary on Disney+ titled A Real Bug’s Life. Narrated by Awkwafina, the show closely follows different species of bugs, explaining their basic nature and the many—very many—hardships they face in one single day. The cinematography is beautiful, but the facts, they’re what keep me in front of the television while I should be washing dishes or folding laundry or, you know, anything else.

Did you know that butterflies taste with their feet? Or that only female mosquitos suck your blood? Or that ants can carry up to 50 times their body weight?

The more I learn about bugs—no matter how crazy the fact—the more sympathetic I feel towards them. Not necessarily less scared, but less eager to crush them when they come near. They have a whole universe happening just under our noses. Who am I to throw a wrench into their very carefully laid plans?

That’s the power that education has. The more we learn, the more empathy we are capable of. Understanding really is everything.

When inRegister managing editor Bre Pizzolato, associate editor Sally Grace Cagle, photographer Jordan Hefler and I met with bee expert Kevin Langley at his hives at Tam Bao Meditation Center in preparation for this month’s cover story, I came ready to learn for this reason. I have always respected bees, but my fear of being stung has somewhat blinded me from truly appreciating their grace and power. But all of that changed on an unseasonably warm February afternoon.

As Langley guided us from hive to hive, I slowly opened up thanks to his sharing of knowledge and calm demeanor. Did you know that a queen bee can lay some 3000 eggs a day? Or that only female bees can sting? Or that bee bread, or the packed pollen used for sustenance by the hive, is a perfect food that could sustain us all if there was simply enough of it?

Slowly, as the day unfolded, each of us became so comfortable as to remove our veils, gloves and even jackets. The bees weren’t out to hurt us. They were trying to coexist—quite peacefully—alongside us.

As I watched them working diligently on their combs alongside their colonies, I was calm, and I sat and took in their beauty. Did you know that the hum of bees’ wings generally matches the musical note of C? Now, when I listen to songs in that octave, I think of the bees and their ecosystem that is so intimately intertwined with our own and yet seems so separate due to our fear of them.

Looking back, maybe my summers spent in the wilderness did change the way I thought about bugs. After all, I still feel a tinge of guilt when I think back on an ant I senselessly crushed while watching the sunrise early one morning at Greenville, South Carolina’s Pretty Place.

The experiences we have and the open-mindedness we bring to them are our defining moments. They shape our lives and they change the way we see the world around us. I know my experience at the Tam Bao Mediation Center changed me.

To have your own bee-embracing encounter, visit Kevin Langley’s AirBnb Experience page here.