"Butterfly born a-day." Early yesterday morning, our chrysalis turned black, a sure sign that our monarch would soon emerge. Jamie and Duncan went for a walk around 10:00, and I checked on the chrysalis a few times while they were gone to see no action. When they returned about an hour later, however, the monarch had emerged. He was stunning. We kept him inside for a few more hours; he needed to get the fluid pumping in his wings before he could fly. Late in the afternoon, we took him outside, removed the lid, and gave him a little nudge. When we finally encouraged him to take off, he landed on my and clung for a few minutes. Then, he took off with tentative but strong flapping of his orange wings, and we said goodbye. Although there were many questions of "where'd the butterfly go," Duncan seemed to understand that butterflies are meant to be outside. I'm pretty sure we saw him today, loading up on food before he contemplates his long flight to Mexico.
PS - I have a great video of Duncan talking about the butterfly, but I need to learn to edit first so stay tuned!
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