I AWAKENED A BUTTERFLY
Two large butterflies frequent our backyard.  One to the east and the other to the west.  They're yellow from the family Lepidoptris.  I don't know for sure, but I seem to remember that genus from Biology. 

As I was wondering where they go at night, because I've never seen one at night anywhere, and I was wondering why they don't seem to travel very far, at least not as far as some mosquitoes which can log 25 miles in a day, I woke one up.

I got so close to him before he awakened that I thought him dead.  I could have picked him up, but I remembered something about animals that don't like human touch.  That is, they will be rejected by their mothers if they smell our scent on them.  I'm not talking about dogs and cats and domestics that like our contact.  Since I didn't want rejection for the Lepidoptris, I just waited and watched.

I thought back to my high school insect collection.  I had a butterfly, but it wasn't very good.  Actually, it was one of my better ones, but none of mine were any good except my fly.  I was great at catching flies and throwing them to the ground and watching them spin around like crazy.  I'm glad butterflies don't do that.

I also thought about butterflies being free.  I rejected that notion, because of my wife, daughter, and oldest granddaughter.  If they didn't travel any farther than a butterfly, they would feel in bondage.  They need their wings to spread and grow and, well, go.  I imagine our youngest granddaughter will be more like them than the butterfly.

I also thought of moron jokes.  They were terrible jokes when I was 8 or 9.  One I recall was "Why did the moron throw the butter out of the upstairs window?"  Ans. "He wanted to see the butter fly."  That's really the only one I remember.  Now, I guess, besides being not very funny, it's probably offensive to morons everywhere.  Maybe that's why those kinds of jokes died out.

He awoke.  No more story.  He didn't seem rattled to see me occupying his space.  He didn't seem embarrassed that he had been caught napping near some lantana.  He just flew away, cool as a butterfly can flitter.  No doubt refreshed.  If he had a thought, it might have centered around what was that moron doing so close to me anyhow?