Of Courage and Clusters

 A number of years ago my daughter and some of the grandchildren and I went to a craft place and I painted a beautiful ceramic monarch. Every spring I hung it up on the fence in our back yard and brought it in again when winter made its entrance. 

This spring there was grief occupying my mind and I forgot. In late summer I saw it  in the basement and brought it upstairs. I decided to hang it on a nail on the deck instead of on the fence so that I would see it more often. While watering plants my arm brushed against it and my beautiful butterfly lay in several pieces at my feet. I was devastated! 

Grandson Ivan happened to be at my house. He said, "Oma, I have some strong glue at home, I'll glue it back together for you."

He gathered up the pieces and took them home. This is the boy for whom I made a butterfly quilt when he was born. There is a monarch on the top right of the quilt below. The picture was taken a number of years ago. 

This year he has a summer job and will be finishing high school in the near future. I hope he will be strong and courageous as he journeys through life! Like the monarch, the only butterfly known to make a two-way migration as birds do. They know when it is time to travel south for the winter, using environmental cues. They fly as far as 3,000 miles to reach their winter home, using a combination of air currents and thermals to travel long distances. Monarchs cluster together to stay warm. Tens of thousands of monarchs can cluster on a single tree. Although monarchs alone weigh less than a gram, tens of thousands of them weigh a lot, sometimes even breaking branches.

 I too, need the courage of a monarch as I continue to navigate life on my own! I'm thankful that I can be in a cluster with others who support and encourage me!