Metaphors of Life Journal: Spangles, Tortoiseshells and Buckeyes

Hmmm, do you need aninjection of colour to lift you above the blahs of a bleak winter?

My apologies for beingsilent in this space for a few weeks. I have been pushing hard to complete amajor project with an end of the month deadline. That deadline has now beenmet. Stay tuned for more on the fruits of that labour down the line.

It is my tradition atthis time of year to do a retrospective of winged wonders from summers past tocombat the rigours of winter. It has been a relatively mild winder in this areawith the exception of the storm of thegeneration which walloped us before Christmas. But it has also been a verygray and bleak winter with little sunlight to cheer us up.

So I offer you someflashes of summer exuberance to brighten your day.

Great Spangled Fritillary

Nothing recallsexuberant July days more than this gaudy butterfly that frequents meadowsthroughout the season. It is well and truly spangledon the outer wing with silvery spots etched with black. On the upper side,the flash of golden orange is unmistakable from any distance. It stores up theshafts of sunlight to feed them back to us in the gray months.

Milbert’s Tortoiseshell

I do not see Milbert’s Tortoiseshells very often andprize them all the more because of it. This one had the fashion sense to poseon white wildflower to showcase its blend of orange, brown and black withspeckles of white on the wing edges. It recalls a sun-bleached summer day inAugust when it wandered into my path.

Buckeye

Buckeyes show up late in the summer as theyexpand their range north across the Great Lakes. The striking, double-ringedeyespots, with black and silver frosting inside of them, have a tropical feeland are complimented by the squiggly orange bar edged with black. September is Buckeye month for followers of wingedwonders.

As the gray days ofwinter persist, let these bright beauties of summer lift your spirit. And maythey be a metaphor for the assurance that there is always sunlight at the endof the tunnel for the gray days that we all must endure in our lives.

~  Now Available Onlinefrom Amazon, Chapters Indigo or Barnes & Noble: Hunting Muskie, Rites ofPassage – Stories by Michael Robert Dyet

~ Michael Robert Dyet is alsothe author of Until the Deep Water Stills – An Internet-enhanced Novel whichwas a double winner in the Reader Views Literary Awards 2009. Visit Michael’swebsite at www.mdyetmetaphor.com .

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