Butterflies

Natalee and I saw something amazing today, monarch butterflies on their migration south to Mexico (I'm assuming). We didn't see clouds of them or huge masses of them. Just monarchs fluttering here and there, all over the southern end of FM 2920. They fluttered through the Target and Academy parking lots, swooped through busy intersections, stopping to rest on cars and landscaping. Natalee was fascinated by them. Suddenly she was pointing to "bu'erbyes" everywhere. And I kept worrying about the ones I saw struggling through the intersections or dipping down into the road, afraid I might hit one. I hate to see dead butterflies flattened in car and truck grills. It feels like such a waste, to see such fragile beauty smashed against someone's speeding vehicle. But what can you do to prevent it? I hate to hit them, but I have an even more special cargo in my backseat that I might put in danger if I'm swerving on the road to avoid hitting insects. Maybe that's why we consider butterflies so beautiful, since they're such fragile creatures who only live for a few months. I'm glad Natalee and I got to see them together. And got to hear her say "bu'erbye."