DailySusan Humor Blog

BUTTERFLIES DON'T JUST WAVE, THEY DANCE

Footnote to yesterday’s story about a waving butterfly: in this beautiful message from a teacher of first-grade girls in a Catholic school, we learn more about the butterfly as a Christian symbol . . . and source of delight:

“Today we released our batch of Painted Lady butterflies into the school courtyard. We nursed them through the larva and pupa stages and this week actually saw them come out of the chrysalis in our butterfly pavilion. What a grand learning experience for first graders!

“But as you know, there is always an inside, sometimes deeper story when little girls are involved. Yesterday after lunch the girls were at their highest level of excitement with the announcement that we had a Pope, and while we were writing in our journals and watching the news coverage to learn the name of the new Pope, our fifth and final butterfly was born (with all those Vatican bells for background music).

“Well, they could hardly contain themselves. Meanwhile, the night before, something happened, and in the morning, we found two of the butterflies flat on the bottom of the pavilion, supposedly dead. I thought, ‘That's OK, we'll talk about life AND death.’ But soon after the Pope was announced, one of the ‘deceased’ butterflies somehow started to maneuver his wings and began to fly!

“The girls insisted it was a MIRACLE from the new Pope and named it Lazarus! (I know, you are really shaking your head by now.) Anyway, when I shared this story with my cousin from Denver last night, she responded that she's surprised they didn't name the newest butterfly . . . yes, you guessed it . . . Benedict!

“Today it was in the 80's so we trekked outside, unzipped the pavilion and let them soar . . . except the one that died. I gently laid it on the ground by some bushes and before long the girls formed a little procession and told me they were having a funeral, and so sweetly laid layers of dandelions, hyacinths and forsythia blossoms in a mound atop.

“And then they danced around as the healthy butterflies danced above them.”

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Praise report: We are blessed by Your choice of Pope Benedict, Father, and we pray down all wisdom, courage, strength, truth and health upon him. Through his leadership and example, may many apparently-dead souls spring back to life, and soar. (2 Corinthians 5:17)