Butterflies and moths are awesome. They’re beautiful insects who get to fly around all day. When I was a kid, I’d sometimes catch a moth outside, keep them in a tea box filled with leaves for a couple days. During their nonconsensual stay-cations, I’d bring them outside and they’d fly around for a bit and return to my hand or the box. After the second or third day, I’d let them go and they’d go about their lives.
I remember luna moths on our screen doors on summer nights. We learned about monarch butterfly migrations in elementary school and then went outside to witness it. I played with caterpillars in the backyard, wondering if I’d meet them again someday as moths.
It’s so rare to see butterflies and moths now. Slowly over the years, they were fewer and fewer. Nowadays, I feel lucky if I see more than 5 a week. Most weeks, I see none.
I’ve lived in urban areas for awhile, so I wondered if that was the reason. My family moved into an RV 2 years ago, so that we could blow where the wind blows, following our nomadic hearts. We get to live among trees and nature wherever we wish, following the good weather. I keep waiting to cross paths with a kaleidoscope of these beautiful insects, but it’s still so rare. (Did you know that a kaleidoscope is the collective noun for butterflies?)