Walking back from "The Hammer and Pincers" at 10.45, I was glad that we had won the quiz once more. The blue of that hot summer's day sky was melting into sunset's lingering rosiness as velvet blackness crept in from the east.
I thought of yesterday and how a painted lady butterfly fluttered into Simon's cottage. I tried to shoo it out but it would not go. It settled on one of the ceiling beams. Upstairs another painted lady had fluttered through the open bedroom window. Shirley watched it and tried to shoo it out but it would not go.
In spite of myself, I sometimes think that butterflies and birds may provide some sort of mysterious signalling at vital points in people's lives. It's probably a load of poppycock but I swear I have witnessed their surprising appearances at key moments and have been left considering what they might suggest.
Throughout history, butterflies have been seen as symbols of many things - not only transformation and purity, but also death and sin. Do butterflies appear when angels are near?
I've heard tale of birds playing an important part of a rite of passage, so why not butterfly's too?
ReplyDeleteI wonder what indigenous Americans might have thought. Is mystery now an embarrassment?
DeleteCongratulations on yet another pub quiz win! What was the decisive point for?
ReplyDeleteInteresting about the two butterflies visiting Simon‘s cottage on the same day.
I love your description of the late evening light.
Decisive point? I knew that this year's Tour de France had begun in Denmark
Delete"Butterflies appear when Angels are near" I've heard that in the past but can't remember where or when. Maybe there is some truth in it, since they have shown up now at Simon's house.
ReplyDeleteWho knows? Maybe some truth.
DeleteI bet you used to give lots of birds the butterflies.
ReplyDeleteOne or two liked the look of me. They were generally short-sighted.
DeleteSymbolism is how we choose to read it. Practically the butterflies were seeking a dark place of cool rest. Is it better to believe in a significance with the coming death of Simon? At least it brings a certain serenity to the scene and that is maybe what you both need. Good news is that the Monarch butterfly in America is starting to swarm again.
ReplyDeleteYou are right to suggest that the mystic symbolism only exists within our heads and the interpretations we craft.
DeleteMost Filipinos believe that a butterfly is the reincarnation of a departed loved one.
ReplyDeleteEven those who are learned doctors?
DeleteThey believe their father comes around occasionally as a brown butterfly.
DeleteMy Buddlieas bushes and Sedums attract the flutterflies.
ReplyDeletePerhaps they are really attracted to you and your family Dave.
DeleteSigns from the spirit world might be poppy cock but they're certainly comforting. I have a dime on my steps leading to my upstairs. I discovered it shortly after my mother's death almost 3 years ago. (Admittedly, I was looking for signs...and still am.) Every time I give the steps a vacuum or a scrub, I stop and gaze at the dime and say hello to my mother. I have no fear a family member will remove the dime. (Picking up stray items strewn about is not their thing.) I have a feeling you and Shirley will see more painted butterflies in unusual places after Simon's passing.
ReplyDeleteWe are having a lovely warm spell in northern England just now. It would be a great time for Simon to depart.
DeleteI think I may have sent you a half finished comment by accident. (I must have accidently hit publish.) I rewrote a new one. I thought you might wonder why I sent two comments.
ReplyDeleteYour 1.41pm comment did not seem unfinished to me Melinda.
DeletePhew! The unfinished one was not published. It just mysteriously disappeared...
DeleteWas a butterfly fluttering by at that moment?
DeleteAn interesting thought YP. Perhaps the butterflies are there to keep Simon company as he approaches his last journey.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on your pub win, and the descriptive words of the sunset.
Perhaps he will die in his bed and when he is found his corpse will be blanketed with painted ladies. Thanks for calling by once again Carol.
DeleteI didn't realize painted ladies were so widespread. I'd never heard of them until I moved to the UK, but maybe they're not in the parts of the USA where I used to live? (Or where I was paying attention to butterflies, at least.) Anyway, it's interesting to think about the significance of their appearance in Simon's house.
ReplyDeleteWell that's what The Oracle said and as you know, Wikipedia is never wrong.
DeletePainted ladies are very common here, Steve (North East). They are the butterfly cocoons that you can buy to watch the butterflies emerge.
DeleteI think if the butterflies brought you and Shirley some comforting thoughts of a peaceful death for Simon, then it is nice you spotted them! I remember when each of my parents were near death, every time the phone rang, my heart raced with the thought, "this is it!" It was a relief when they each had passed, as they were ready and so were we. Sad, yes, but ready for them to be at peace. I hope Simon is at peace soon, Neil.
ReplyDelete