This morning I received a question from a poet who was trying to implement ULev-style collapsible sidebars on her blog.  While tooling about on her blog I found the beginnings of a collection of butterfly-related poetry.  I like butterflies, poetry, and especially poems about flight (as you all know considering the many poems I have written about birds).  One of the blogger's poems caught my eye...

From Mysteries Within article A Butterfly Hovers Closely:

A butterfly hovers closely
And then quickly moves away,
Swiftly going where so ever
Her heart may freely say.

A butterfly lowers and rises
With the winds’s gusty breath,
As if coupled within a dance
Of a loving tenderness.

The butterfly only knows
How it feels to have wings,
To kiss the petals of flowers
In such elegant flitterings.

To have but one moment
Of such an exquisite flight,
Would be like a dream
Where all seems so right.

There are a few minor issues of meter, but altogether, I like it. Given that I've romanticized dozens of bird species, why not romanticize butterflies? Though I found the idea that the butterfly knows only wingedness a definite oversight, since all butterflies begin life as caterpillars, crawling on leaves. I've always liked poems written in response to other poems, so I couldn't resist posting one of my own as a comment. Here it is:

Caterpillar Ponderings

The problem is anatomy my lepidopt’ric friend,
The leaf-worm’s physiology includes a winged end.
Alas poor humans, you and I, are built of baser things,
Our beaded necklace – DNA – includes no jewel for wings.

While there’s no harm in dwelling on the beauty of a star,
Let it n’er dissuade you from loving what you are,
Be it mariposa, papillon, or schmetterling,
The butterfly is a different, not a better thing…

It may be a symphony of color in each part,
But has mind for drinking nectar, instead of thinking, art,
Or any of the mental pleasures, and so remember this,
Our wings are born in poetry – that is our chrysalis.

Yes, I know "lepidopteric" is not a word, but you still knew what I was talking about didn't you?  Feel free to pull me over on that one, I'll be happy to show you my poetic license.