Editor’s note: The Viewfinder is a weekly feature in which a photographer tells a story through the lens of a camera.

NATCHEZ — David Holland spends a lot of time with his bees.

“Some people hunt, some people fish, some people golf,” he said. “I don’t much care for any of those, I bee keep.”

Holland, 76, is a retired building contractor of 40 years. He began beekeeping again three years ago after a two-decade hiatus.

He now runs a small eight-hive operation out of the backyard of his Scotland Drive house in Natchez. Each hive can have up to 60,000 bees, and all together, yield 15 gallons of honey every year.

“I am fascinated by them, the way they work together for a single purpose,” he said. “I love to leave them alone and come back and see what they have accomplished.”

Holland has been retired for 8 years and has not enjoyed it the way he heard he would.

In February, Holland had a minor stroke. While he has retained his mobility and his wits, the incident has changed his views toward retirement.

“The golden years are not what they are talked up to be,” he said. “There is always a doctor’s appointment, always a new health problem.”

Beekeeping remains a bright spot in Holland’s life. He does everything himself, from collecting the honey to building their enclosures.

“I have a lot of fun with it,” he said.

Holland believes that through beekeeping he is apart of something bigger.

“Every single thing we eat has been touched by honey bees in some regard,” he said. “I like to be apart of that process.”