Butterflies Are Free To Fly

As many of you know, butterflies have a special meaning in my life. Don't want to get overly introspective about it here on my blog, but suffice it to say they have come to represent some special people in our family who we've lost. My family and I believe that while butterflies may come in and out of our lives too quickly, they always leave behind something beautiful. With that said, butterflies (and for me, particularly blue swallowtails), sometimes bring bittersweet tears to my eyes, but they, without fail, make me smile.

Today, on a simple trip to the grocery store with my favorite boy, we saw something pretty amazing. Off the side of a road, there were at least 50 to 60 monarch butterflies in a flower patch. I had to pull over and take a few pictures (only had my Canon point and shoot with me, but hey, I was glad to have something!). They were happy to hang out by the flowers, and flew everywhere when the cars drove by. Chris was pretty impressed with it all, and said it was really beautiful.

Chris wasn't even born when our first loss occurred, and was very young when the other losses took place. He doesn't yet understand what butterflies have come to mean for me. But I know that our simple, little errand trips mean a lot to him ... our mom/son time together. And after seeing the butterflies today, I know that once again, the butterflies have left behind yet another beautiful memory for us both.


“Happiness is a butterfly, which when pursued, is always just beyond your grasp, but which, if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you” -- Nathaniel Hawthorne