The garden was immaculate and the size of the garden compared to that of the yard was shocking. From end to end the entire bed was planted with rows and rows of flowers. All of the rows appeared planned and neatly sectioned off by wooden stakes and twine. He encouraged the kids to explore so the two worked their way down each row, whispering to each other about how colorful the flowers were. Brian caught up with them and spoke about the types of flowers in the garden. He would point and blurt out the names of each of the flowers; Yarrow, Blanket Flower and Passion Flower there were so many different names that the girl could remember only a few.

‘They fly around and are beautiful’

She assumed he was talking about birds and asked him what birds he liked best. He seemed frustrated and looked around like he was looking for something. The boy started to get anxious, he obviously wanted to get down to the creek and start pulling in crappies (the best time for fishing those little things was when it was sunny!) He started to say something when Brian spoke and requested they ‘sit and wait’ as he pointed to the back of the yard. There, he kept a chair in the shade under the biggest tree in the yard. He made it clear that the chair was for her and motioned for her to take it. He and the boy sat on the ground on either side of her.

From the chair, she was far enough away that the bees and the other flying bugs left her alone but not so far away that reduced her ability to see the flowers’ detail and enjoy their sweet smells. Brian drew his knees to his chin and whispered ‘watch and wait’.

The wait was painful (15 minutes she recalled) and that much time to a 15 year old was an eternity! But curiosity won over as both kids sat…and waited. At some point well into the wait, she looked down at the boy and he returned her glance and rolled his eyes – the unspoken message of ‘this is crazy’. As they shared this silent thought there was a fluttering near the back row of flowers that caught her attention. It took a few seconds for her mind to recognize what it was – A butterfly! She looked over at Brian and saw him grinning from ear to ear. He looked up at her and appeared as though he was trying really hard not to jump up and shout yippee!

One butterfly turned into two and then five. They sat silent as the monarchs converged on the garden as if it were a free buffet. The little insects darted in and out of the rows; a sort of butterfly tag.

It was amazing and worth the wait.