Beauty and Strength

A Monarch Butterfly spotted in the last days of summer here in Quebec, Canada. It is enjoying the incredibly sweet, incense-like smell of a Butterfly Bush (Buddleia) before it begins its migration to Mexico.

Because of its amazing metamorphosis from caterpillar to beautiful butterfly, the Monarch is a symbol of transformation and change.

I think it is also a symbol for the wisdom we pass on from one generation to the next. Along the migration path the adult Monarch lays its eggs and dies shortly after. The eggs have been imprinted with the migration route and as soon as they mature, they will continue their parent's journey.

That something as fragile as a butterfly can travel across thousands of miles of rugged terrain at the mercy of temperature, wind, rain, predators and a limited food supply is nothing short of a miracle.

The orange and black stained-glass wings with their polka dot border also make the Monarch an eye-catching beauty.

I see it as just one more of the many miracles of nature; each one unique, each worth stopping for and appreciating.