From Forest to Hive: Why Honeycomb Cottage MN Supports Forest Lake Nature School
Exploring the forest and learning on a beautiful summer day.
From Forest to Hive: Why Honeycomb Cottage MN Supports Forest Lake Nature School
In the northeast Twin Cities metro, a quiet revolution in wellness and education is taking root. At Honeycomb Cottage MN, we believe that true healing begins in the body, through connection—connection to breath, to rhythm, to the land, and to each other. That’s why we’re proud to support and uplift the incredible work being done at Forest Lake Nature School, where children are learning to listen to the natural world in a way that feels deeply aligned with our own mission.
Nature Isn’t a Luxury. It’s Medicine.
Forest Lake Nature School isn’t your typical classroom. Tucked into the forests of Minnesota, this nature-based program invites children to experience learning through direct contact with the living world—whether it’s identifying native plants, reading animal tracks, or learning bird language as a way to quiet the mind and tune into the present moment. It’s a place where ecological literacy meets embodied awareness, and we can’t help but feel a kinship with that approach.
Because at Honeycomb Cottage MN, we’ve seen first-hand how being immersed in nature—really immersed, not just “visiting”—can change everything. Our bee therapy sessions are built on the same principles that guide the forest school: slowness, sensory richness, and regulation through resonance.
Children Learn by Feeling. So Do Adults.
While Forest Lake Nature School serves children, the lessons ripple into family systems and communities. Children come home more grounded, curious, and calm—able to identify the call of a chickadee or tell you what tree they sat under during their morning sit spot. This isn’t just charming—it’s regulation training. It’s a nervous system being shaped by rhythm, silence, sound, and relationship.
That’s exactly what happens inside Honeycomb Cottage, where apitherapy taps into the same principles in a different form. When you lie above a beehive, listening to the low hum of 150,000 bees beneath you, your body remembers how to sync with nature’s frequency. The sound, vibration, and scent of the hive all work together to soothe the fight-or-flight system, support better breathing, and help you rest in a deeper way—just like a child curled up on moss beneath a white pine.
Two Paths, One Ecosystem of Care
Forest Lake Nature School teaches that nature is not just a backdrop—it’s a teacher, healer, and guide. We couldn’t agree more.
We often say at Honeycomb Cottage: “We don’t heal people. Nature does. We just create the space.” That’s what Forest Lake Nature School is doing for kids—creating the space for growth, wonder, and healing to unfold at nature’s pace.
Whether through a child’s joyful discovery of a spider web or an adult’s quiet moment above a beehive, the result is the same: deeper connection to self, land, and life.
Shared Values, Shared Ground
Both of our practices are rooted in:
Nervous system restoration through nature
Land-based learning and presence
Respect for natural rhythms, seasons, and cycles
Ecological awareness as a path to personal wellbeing
Indigenous-informed approaches to observation, relationship, and reciprocity
And most importantly, both Forest Lake Nature School and Honeycomb Cottage MN believe that healing happens when we remember we’re part of something larger—a hive, a forest, a community, an ecosystem.
The Science and Soul of Nature-Based Therapies
Scientific research increasingly backs what both of our organizations intuitively know:
Time in nature improves mental clarity, immune function, and emotional regulation
Exposure to natural soundscapes (like birdsong or the hum of bees) helps lower cortisol and support vagal tone
Direct interaction with natural elements helps build resilience, reduce anxiety, and foster long-term wellbeing
At Honeycomb Cottage, we’re proud to offer bee therapy experiences that align with these same principles—reconnecting guests to their bodies, breath, and the more-than-human world.
As Emerson once wrote:
“The invariable mark of wisdom is to see the miraculous in the common.”
We see that miracle every day—whether it’s in a child learning the difference between a crow and a raven, or an adult feeling their shoulders finally drop as 150,000 bees sing beneath them.
An Invitation to Connect
If your child is attending Forest Lake Nature School—or if you simply resonate with their mission—we invite you to experience Honeycomb Cottage MN as part of your own journey toward rest, reconnection, and restoration.
Come lie above the hive. Listen. Breathe. Remember.
You’re part of the ecosystem too.
