I am doing something I have never done before -- writing a post to be submitted in the future.  I am doing this because I am going to be MIA for a week or so.  We are heading to our annual "family reunion" week up north (as we say here in Minnesota -- which is pretty much "up north" to everyone else in the entire USA).  I just don't want my old and new friends to think you have been abandoned!

I have never before called this annual trek a family reunion, but in truth, that is what it is.  My sisters and I gather at the same place, during the same week each summer, with as many of our children as can make it.  Most of the "kids" are grown to adulthood now, I have the only kids that are still truly kids.  All others of the generation we have borne are out of high school.  Some are married, some are even bearing their own children!  Our parents always join us for a few days, but never for the whole week.  We have our rituals.  We always exchange our birthday gifts for the year during this week in the summer, regardless of when our actual birthdays are.  My actual birthday DOES happen to always fall during this week, so I feel extra special.  I get to have a birthday party with my sisters every single year.  We always spend one day just shopping.  If we are lucky, we get to go shopping at "Crazy Days" in the nearest town to the resort where we stay.  It's a highlight.  It's the same junk you can find in nearly every tourist town across the country, but we love it because it is our tradition.  I always visit my favorite bookstore, Beagle Books, and ask the friendly and knowledgeable owner for her recommendation - and then I buy it.  We eat our evening meals together every night, each of the sisters taking a turn being the cook for the night.  The men take over for us one night, proving they are still "hunter-gatherers" by supplying a bountiful harvest of sunfish, crappie, northern, and walleye for our main course.  We go out to eat at Rocky's Pizza on our first night there, because we are all too tired from packing and traveling to worry about cooking.  We go out for breakfast at the West 40 on our last morning together, at the end of a week that always seems too short. We trade books with each other.  We drink coffee in each other's cabin every morning -- whose cabin it is depends on who has the freshest pot.  We talk, and laugh, and sometimes cry.  Occasionally we get on each other's nerves.  We bask in the summer sun and our sisterhood.

I am so blessed to have a family that enjoys being together.  I thank God and my parents for the environment of love and harmony that has always existed in our family.  I hope my own boys have the same kind of friendship with each other as they make their way in the world as my siblings and I have always enjoyed. 

I'll see you all next week when we get back!  

(The next generation -- taken 2 years ago, all but one were able to make it that year)

 

We have butterflies!

Sunday morning Isaac went out to the kitchen to check on the butterfly progress and was excited to discover that our first two butterflies had been "born"!  I was a little disappointed that we missed the big moment, but quickly realized that we had four more opportunities to catch the "big moment".  After we returned home from church, we spent some time observing and playing with our newborn friends.  We brought them fresh cut flowers from our garden, hoping the feed them if they were hungry after their long sleep.  They didn't seem much interested in the flowers, surprisingly, but they were docile and friendly and we were able to gently handle them. 

One of our first-born's

An empty chrysalis.

Checking out the flowers.

It's feet feel sticky!

Notice the two dots on the lower wings?  That tells us it's a boy!

Making friends.

This chrysalis is nearly ready to hatch.  The walls are becoming more transparent and you can begin to see the familiar monarch wing pattern showing through.

In the morning (Monday) two more of the chrysalises were obviously about to hatch.

The chrysalis cases become almost as clear as glass!

We decided to release our first two butterflies (both males) to give the next butterflies more room.

We brought the cage outdoors and opened it.  Isaac says goodbye. 

At first the butterflies seemed reluctant to leave.  I turned the cage around so that the opening faced the morning sun....

One of the butterflies took flight!  It flew high up into a nearby oak tree where it alighted on a leaf and rested in the sun.

The second monarch followed suit, landing only a few feet away from the first one in the same tree.  They stayed there, sunning themselves, for over 1/2 hour!  When their wings were closed, they were almost impossible to see.  We could only glimpse them because we knew where to look, and occasionally they would open their splendid orange and black wings, almost like they were waving at us!

We closed up the cage with the remaining 4 chrysalises and brought it back inside.  I walked away to get a cup of coffee and Isaac announced "Another one is hatching!"  I rushed back and opened the screen for a better look, then grabbed my camera to record the action.  Because it happens so quickly, I missed most of the beginning and didn't get very good video.  However, the next chrysalis (#4, if you are keeping count) began to open soon afterwards, and this time I was prepared!  Here is video of both "births".  Naturally, I think the whole thing is fascinating, but it really doesn't get "good" until about 3 minutes in, when the second butterfly begins to emerge.

Here are a few more pictures, showing the growth of the wings.

The first set (lower ones) of wings are covering the abdomen.

The tip of the second (upper) set of wings is just barely peeking out.

Now both sets of sings can be clearly seen.

Both butterflies are at full size.

Update this morning:  6:00 AM -- I woke up and went to let the dogs out, then checked on our butterflies.  The 5th chrysalis was open and the newest butterfly had just slid out.  I watched it closely for exactly 11 minutes, seeing the wings grow to full size.  Watching with my eyes instead of through a camera lens gave me a better perspective.  I could really observe how the abdomen contracted while it was pumping up the wings.  I will never tire of watching this transformation miracle occur!  For me, it is a vivid illustration of how painful changes in our lives -- places where we cannot see what the future holds, and cannot imagine what the next step is -- are all a part of God's great plan for us.  We just need to hang on, be patient, and trust God to bring us through the uncertainty and change into a beautiful new place.  It gives me hope.

LOOK THROUGH EYES OF HOPE AND SEE A BUTTERFLY INSIDE THE CATERPILLAR, HOPE KNOWS THAT BEAUTY IS WAITING TO BE BORN IN THE UNLIKELIEST PLACES ... Thea Miller Ryan

 

Beauty is waiting to be born all around you, and even in you.  Especially in you.

 

NBC's Today show aired a segment on the 4th of July about an amazing program for WWII vets called "Honor Flight" that my siblings and I are trying to get my Dad signed up for.  Here is the clip:

It would mean so much to my Dad to be able to do this.  The founder, Earl Morse, wants to honor the heroes from a past generation for what they did to protect the world and our way of life.  In my eyes, Mr. Morse is a hero as well.  More information about the Honor Flight program can be found here.

Thank you, heros of any generation, who have fought to protect and defend our freedoms.  I am grateful.