My butterfly came back yesterday. It followed Larry in from taking the trash out and perched on the door behind him. He didn't even realise it was there until I pointed it out to him. We were talking and I saw it fluttering around behind him.

"Don't move!"

I had to hop over the gate (then put up another one over it to keep Trent from hopping over after me), to get there but I already knew before I saw it which butterfly it was.

Sure enough, sitting on the open door, opening and closing it's little brown and orange wings, was my new li'l buddy.

They usually fly away when you get close, but not only did it let me do so, when I held my hand above it, it climbed right on and sat there for a few minutes, checking out my hand with that sniffy thing they do. I had just changed Trent's diaper so I can only imagine what it must have been thinking.

(Whoa - this chick reeks!!)

It stayed on my hand for a little more than two minutes, long enough for Larry to get the camera and take two or three good pictures of it. Then it climbed to the top of my hand and acted like it wanted to fly so I opened the side door and told it, "It's okay, you can go," and it paused for a second or two longer. I remembered my mom saying that it had probably been trying to thank me for pulling it from the spider web so I said, "And you're welcome. I'm glad I did." It then flew away.

But before I had the chance to close the door it came back in at top speed and landed

:: shock & surprise ::

right on my face. If I had closed my right eye a millisecond later it would have landed right on my cornea. I turned around and Larry immediately started laughing. I don't know if it was because I had a butterfly on my face or because I had my right eye closed so tightly I looked like Popeye, but either way he was much amused.

"What do I do?"

"Turn around and hold the door open and see if it flies away."

I could feel it doing the sniffy thing on my eyelid and it tickles like crazy.

It did fly away when I opened the door but I have the feeling I'll be seeing it again.

It let me hold it. I couldn't believe it. It just sat in my hand, opening and closing it's wings and let me hold and talk to it. In the same instant I felt so excited and yet so peaceful. I want to let it stay inside with me and keep it, but I know it can't survive indoors so I won't try to do that. But it sure would be nice to have it around. I'm going to miss it when winter comes.

I wonder if this kind of butterfly migrates or hibernates? I'll have to look it up.