An Itty Bitty Bitty Little Sign of Hope in the Garden

 I remember the day that Jameson came home from school raving about monarch butterflies and how we HAD to help them.  He had just gone on a field trip that day to a local garden and some master gardeners had talked to the students about how our town was in the path for thousands of monarchs migrating each year.  He learned about how the caterpillars could only eat milkweed and he asked me if we could plant some.  

We had just moved into our house and I didn't have any garden yet, just a blank slate of a yard.  He passed away a few months after that field trip.  He never got to see spring at our new house in the mountains.  He never got to see our garden and we didn't get to plant milkweed together.

When I started my garden as a way to get out of the house and keep myself busy, one of my main goals was to create a butterfly garden in honor of Jameson.  The first year, I planted tons of milkweed, but other than 3 caterpillars who disappeared as quickly as they showed up, I have never seen much monarch action on the plants.  This spring, I decided to try a different variety, one that I've noticed seems to be more prefered by the local monarch butterflies, for whatever reason.  

I was outside in the garden 2 or 3 weeks ago and saw a monarch fluttering around my seedlings, still in their little containers.  I hadn't even planted them in the ground yet and I was able to find tiny white eggs on the seedlings.  They are very tiny, by the way, smaller than a pin head.  

Naturally, I quickly planted those milkweed seedlings in the ground, very carefully, and have been watching them like a hawk ever since, hoping to see little caterpillars.  Tonight, while I was out watering some newly transplanted phlox, I spotted some itty bitty, tiny striped caterpillars.  When I say tiny, I mean I am surprised I could see them with my bare eyes.  They were maybe 2 millimeters long, but they were definitely there.  I spotted about three of them, but there are still a lot of eggs that haven't hatched.

I wish Jameson were here to see his little monarch caterpillar babies.  I hope he sees the little bit of good I'm doing for the little creatures he cared about so much.  Mama is trying to keep going, buddy.  I hope I make you proud.