[Note: I turned this into a children’s story, but this actually happened to me one summer when I was small. It’s an experience I never forgot.]
~
Amy leaned over and smelled the sweet, honey-like fragrance of the tiny white flowers on a leafy green bush. It was spring — her most favorite time of year — and the big backyard was alive with blooming flowers, buzzing bees, and orange-and-black butterflies playing among the wild dandelions growing in the grass.
The butterflies were called monarchs, and Amy looked forward to their arrival every spring.
As she peered deeper into the bush, Amy spied a small green object hanging from a slender brown twig. She reached into the bush and broke off the little twig. She held the object gently in her hand, admiring the delicate green color. Near the top was a hard ridge tinted with yellow that seemed to sparkle like gold in the warm spring sunlight.
Amy had found a butterfly chrysalis. Some people call them cocoons. They are also called pupas.
Amy had learned a lot about butterflies from her teacher at school. She knew that female butterflies lay their eggs on the underside of plant leaves. After a few days small caterpillars, called larvae, eat their way out of the eggs. They finish eating the eggshells — their very first meal! After that, they attach themselves to a leaf and eat and eat and eat until they become too big for their skin. They shed their old skin, a process called molting, and then gobble it up to get important nutrients. Mmm — delicious!
Caterpillars continue to eat and grow and shed their skin until they have done this four times. Now, they are about 2 inches long. But they still have a long way to go before they turn into beautiful butterflies.
The caterpillars take long walks in search of the perfect place to rest. When they find it, they weave a sticky, silky attachment called a silk button. This allows the caterpillars to hang upside down and begin a process called metamorphosis.
For the last time, the caterpillars shed their skin and emerge as a small, oval object called a pupa, chrysalis, or cocoon. This is the third stage in the butterfly life cycle.
Amy realized what a precious treasure she held in her hand. She gathered a handful of grass and leaves and covered the bottom of a large glass jar. She carefully laid the little green cocoon to rest in the soft little nest. Then she punched air holes in the lid with a nail and screwed it on top of the jar.
She placed the jar on a table next to her bed, where the warm spring sunshine would shine through the bedroom window and warm the little green cocoon.
Every day, she looked at the little cocoon in the jar, and waited. Amy knew that the caterpillar’s body inside the chrysalis would dissolve into a liquid and the cells of the adult butterfly begin to grow. The little cocoon became more and more transparent as the immature cells developed into a full-fledged butterfly. Pretty soon, she could see the orange-and-black wings of an adult monarch inside the chrysalis.
One morning, Amy woke up and glanced at the big glass jar next to her bed. But something was different. The little cocoon was broken and empty. Sitting next to it was a brand new orange-and-black butterfly with white markings on its wings. It was the most beautiful monarch butterfly she had ever seen.
The butterfly sat on a dry leaf, slowly moving its wings up and down. Amy watched in fascination, amazed by the miracle of nature she had witnessed in the big glass jar.
But the glass jar was no place to keep such a delicate and fragile creature. She took the jar outside, unscrewed the lid, and watched the beautiful butterfly flutter away.
Dawn Pisturino
June 8, 2022
Copyright 2008-2022 Dawn Pisturino. All Rights Reserved.
The Spring Equinox marks the festival of Eostre – also known as Ostara – a Germanic goddess worshiped by the Anglo-Saxons. If “Eostre” looks familiar, it’s because the word eventually morphed into “Easter.”
The pagan symbols of Easter include rabbits, hares, and eggs. Rabbits and hares represent fertility, while eggs symbolize fertile purity. Easter egg hunts can be viewed as a re-enactment of rebirth and renewal rituals practiced by ancient people. Lighting a bonfire at dawn on Easter morning hearkens back to the days when Germanic believers lit bonfires at dawn on the morning of the Spring Equinox. Decorating eggs and wearing new clothes symbolize the end of winter, the coming of Spring, and the birth of new life.
We all look forward to the coming of spring and all the beautiful treasures it brings: fresh green grass, colorful and fragrant flowers, birds singing in the trees, blue skies and sunshine, and warm breezes wafting through our open windows. Spring is the time when we feel energetic and renewed. We want to stretch out our muscles and get outdoors in the sunshine. We feel suddenly motivated to clean out our closets and send belongings we no longer need to the local thrift shop. We shop for new clothes, try a new hairstyle, revel in nature and the world at large. After the oppression of winter, Spring sets us FREE.
Happy Easter! Happy Spring!
Dawn Pisturino April 11, 2020; April 12, 2022 Copyright 2020-2022 Dawn Pisturino. All Rights Reserved.
As the sun grows brighter and the days grow longer, I plan to spend more time outdoors. So, I will only be blogging Monday through Friday. I’m taking weekends off!
I will still be responding to comments and visiting people’s blogs. The extra time also allows me to work on my own writing projects, which I have been neglecting. Time to get back to work!
Here’s The Beatles singing “Here Comes the Sun” from my favorite album, Abbey Road. Enjoy!
(Official Beatles video from Universal Music Group)
Spring is coming!
And, Happy President’s Day!
Dawn Pisturino
February 21, 2022
Copyright 2022 Dawn Pisturino. All Rights Reserved.
Today, we wait with bated breath for Punxsutawney Phil to emerge from his burrow and decide whether to hibernate for another six weeks or to celebrate that an early spring is coming!
This annual ritual was borrowed from the Pennsylvania Dutch (Amish and Mennonite) farmers in Pennsylvania and dates back to the 1800s. Rumor has it that if Phil sees his shadow, we will have six more weeks of winter. If he doesn’t, an early spring is on its way. Allegedly, Punxsutawney Phil’s predictions have a 39% accuracy rate. Not too cool, Phil!
But, whatever he predicts, this fat, over-sized rodent is a fun way to mark the middle of winter. After all, the Spring equinox will arrive no matter what Phil says!
Here’s a cute video by CGP Grey which explains Groundhog Day:
And don’t forget to watch Bill Murray in the hilarious 1993 comedy, Groundhog Day!
Groundhog Day, if nothing else, is a great excuse to party!
Happy Groundhog Day!
Dawn Pisturino
February 2, 2022
Copyright 2022 Dawn Pisturino. All Rights Reserved.
This is what the desert looks like in spring when we get adequate amounts of rain and snow in the winter: (click on photos to enlarge)
Prickly Pear Cactus in Bloom 2010
Prickly Pear Cactus in Bloom 2010
Prickly Pear cactus in Bloom 2010
Beaver Tail Cactus in Bloom 2010
We didn’t get as much rain and snow this winter, and it shows. The cactus blooms are sparse this spring. And it’s a shame, because they’re so pretty. I always look forward to seeing them when the weather warms up. The weather has been so nice, I don’t feel like writing! I just want to go outside and dig in the dirt. I’ve really had to force myself to sit down and concentrate on the novel I’m writing. I’m sure other writers feel the same way.
HAPPY SPRING!
Dawn Pisturino
Copyright 2012 Dawn Pisturino. All Rights Reserved. Photos by Dawn Pisturino.
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