An older cousin once asked me this question, probably to check how well I could spell.
My answer shocked her: “B-U-T-T-E-R-F-L-Y”
She didn’t know whether to laugh or get mad, “You have no respect for older people!”
I replied, “Oh, but I think of a butterfly when I hear the word beauty.”
“Pilosopo!” she said and stormed out of the room.
* * *
I was very young when that incident happened, and I couldn’t even remember it anymore. But recently, I have been painting butterflies and when my cousin saw them, she told me that story. I am sure she exaggerated it a little.
So we laughed about it.
But butterflies are no laughing matter. When one beholds a butterfly, he can’t help but be awed. To me, they are probably one of the most beautiful of God’s creations. If you love art, as I do, you won’t miss the elaborate and detailed designs of the butterfly’s wings.
The colors of many varieties are so vivid and at the same time so subtle, it is hard for me to capture their exact hues on canvas.
And what makes them even more beautiful is the fact that they are symmetrical! One wing is like a mirror image of the other. Amazing!
* * *
There are over 18,500 species of butterflies all over the world. So even if I painted one a day, I won’t be able to paint them all in my lifetime.
To name a few, the varieties of a butterfly are: Monarch, Painted lady, Viceroy, Red-Spotted Purple, Buckeye, and Zebra Longwing. We’ll run out of space if I named them all.
Butterflies taste with their feet because they do not have mouths. They all need the sun to fly, so they fly during the day. Yes, they need to be warm to fly; they cannot fly if they are too cold.
Since the Philippines is a tropical country, we are blessed with the sight of so many butterflies wherever we go.
* * *
Each butterfly goes through a life cycle, which might have already been taught you in school. But let me summarize it anyway.
There are four stages:
The first stage is the eggs. This is where a girl butterfly lays eggs on a leaf. It takes about five days for the eggs to hatch.
The second stage is the caterpillar. It is when the egg is hatched that the caterpillar comes out of the egg. Always hungry, it likes to eat all the time. So it grows really fast. Once it is all grown, the next stage begins.
The third stage is the chrysalis. The caterpillar makes a chrysalis and goes inside it. This is also called the pupa stage. Inside the chrysalis, it starts to change – into a butterfly. Once the caterpillar has changed into a butterfly, it moves to the next stage.
The fourth stage is also the last stage in the life cycle: A beautiful butterfly comes out of the chrysalis and flies up in the air, flitting from flower to flower.
As soon as the butterfly finds a mate, it lays eggs. And the lifecycle process starts all over again.
* * *
Whenever you think of beauty, imagine a butterfly. Better yet, draw, paint, or take a photo of one and appreciate how well it was created by our creative God.
Email me at: gdchong@gmail.com or send me a message through my website: http://leavesofgrace.blogspot.com.