Orange and Black

Out of the corner of her eye she saw a flash of orange and black. She glanced up from her biology textbook, but it was gone. 

Well, it was Halloween time, so she probably had orange and black burned into her eyeballs.

She went back to her studies. It was relaxing to read out here on the campus lawn.

Another flicker of color caught her eye. What the heck?

She rolled onto her back and looked up. There was a butterfly hovering over her flapping its beautiful orange and black wings. She recognized it as a monarch. They were popular here in Santa Cruz. In fact, there was a big festival coming up soon. Thousands of monarchs traveled here for the winter, just like the swallows in Capistrano.

Why was it hovering over her? She didn't look like a flower. In fact, she was wearing all black, including her hair. She watched the delicate creature for a few moments until it started to move away. Then it came back and moved away again, as if trying to get her to follow. 

Why not? She had almost an hour to kill.

She put her book inside her backpack and headed off after the insect. She followed it into a small grove of trees. It flitted around her then shot up into the sky. When she looked up she could hardly believe her eyes. 

There were hundreds of butterflies covering a high branch. There were so many they looked like leafs!

"Whoa!" She cried out. Suddenly they all broke away from the branch and she was enveloped in a cloud of fluttering wings. She laughed and spun around like a child, delighting in the wonder of this magical moment. 

This was the best day ever! And she finally knew what her costume was going to be this year.

A beekeeper!

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We went to the Monarch Festival in Santa Cruz today. And yes it was magical.