Nov
05
2024
A newly eclosed monarch butterfly hung near its now-transparent burst chrysalis, gathering its strength to fly. Other chrysalids waited for the magic event to seize them. This particular monarch was the first one raised this season on the author’s North High Street porch. (Photo by Audrey Hackett)

A newly eclosed monarch butterfly hung near its now-transparent burst chrysalis, gathering its strength to fly. Other chrysalids waited for the magic event to seize them. This particular monarch was the first one raised this season on the author’s North High Street porch. (Photo by Audrey Hackett)

First Lines — Perfect as they are

We have bugs on our porch. Lots of them. Not just the usual ants and spiders — but monarch butterflies, in all stages of their lives.

For the past three summers, I’ve raised monarch butterflies on our porch in order to support — to beautifully augment — the local monarch population. It started quite innocently, with just a few caterpillars of good size that I shepherded through an “instar” change or two, as their molting is known, into chrysalis phase and, finally, into full-fledged butterfly-adulthood. The practice expanded in scope and meaning as my sense of purpose and usefulness deepened, and as my love of these creatures’ weird, wiggly, silent and self-contained world grew, and grew, and grew. Like a caterpillar!

We now have more than 40 monarchs, from egg to butterfly, living on our porch. The photo printed here is our first monarch of this season. She became an exquisite, jade-green and gold-banded chrysalis on Aug. 15, and eclosed into an orange-and-black monarch butterfly on Aug. 26. Eclosed! That’s a real butterfly-word, meaning “emerged.” Among other things, butterflies possess a lovely language.

The transformation a monarch undergoes from caterpillar to winged-thing is severe. As a chrysalis, nearly every part of the creature is dissolved, then refashioned into a life form dramatically dissimilar to what came before. And yet — there’s continuity, mysterious to ponder.

That’s the impetus behind the poem below. But really, the impetus is the beings themselves, the transformations they enact, and are. If all of life is just streams of energy encountering other streams, I am happy to flow my life with theirs — the monarchs, regal and humble, always changing, perfect as they are.

House of Change

“…out of that house of change now comes
  a fragile winged creature of the air…”
   —Hal Borland’s Book of Days

Change is coming
to the house again change
that multiplies my fingers and puts wing
beats in my hair

I thought I could be orange forever
or gold or whatever
colors dimming dancing came to me

I thought I could be changed
forever and so not
bother

where are we going brother sister
father mother back along
the chain of creatures the necklace ladder
shadows crawling out
remember

of the stars

—Audrey Hackett

 

From the Szempruch family: A monarch butterfly emerges from its chrysalis Aug. 26, 2020, at 9:37 a.m., much to the delight of Abigail and Hazel. (Video by Lucas Szempruch)

*This column originally appeared in the Sept. 3 issue of the News. To read other First Lines poetry columns, visit the archive page here.

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3 Responses to “First Lines — Perfect as they are”

  1. Anonymous says:

    “My Father’s Child”

    Lately,
    too much
    ruminating
    (I forgot
    to have
    children)
    I spend this
    day
    wondering
    what will
    become of me
    if I should
    die of some
    pandemic~
    or anything
    Suddenly,
    I remember
    my father
    many years ago
    announcing to me
    he’d “made
    arrangements”
    simple as that–
    “paid in full”
    he said with
    a quiet laugh,
    finding humor
    in the planner
    having asked
    about his wishes
    for “disposition
    of his cremated
    remains” Daddy
    retorting “Jesus
    Christ, man,
    don’t you have a
    dumpster?”
    It made me cry
    when he told me
    but now,
    smiling
    when I am
    asked perhaps
    I will
    say the same
    and only hope

    dust finds
    its own rest…

    .

  2. Audrey Hackett says:

    Hi Susan! Yes, milkweed is the only food the caterpillars eat. The monarch butterflies lay their eggs on milkweed plants (usually on the undersides of leaves) and the caterpillars hatch out and start eating! Common milkweed and swamp milkweed are two good choices to plant in your yard. Thanks, Audrey

  3. Susan Rae Oldfield says:

    Thank you for sharing. Do you feed the caterpillars milkweed?

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