WINSTON WEEKLY^[1]

Vol. 2, No. 30

July 28, 2024

WHY BUTTERFLIES MATTER

Exiting the library last week, a young boy and his mother stopped after a butterfly landed in front of them. His mother bent down to look when I heard the boy ask, “Why do butterflies matter?” As I walked past, the mother looked at me and said, “He never stops asking why.” I assured her that was a good thing, but I could see the doubt in her eyes. Her son was likely four or five, and thus engaged in the daily “why, why, why”?

The exchange caused me to reflect on the days, weeks, and months my children incessantly asked “Why”? During those moments, I had the same doubts as the mother I passed. But I realize now that their curiosity was essential to their brain development and need to make sense of the world.

So why do butterflies matter? The Butterfly Conservation starts its cover page with “Why butterflies matter.” www.butterflyconservation.org. The website provides more detail than I can cover here, but some interesting facts include the following: 1) butterflies have been around for at least 50 million years; 2) butterflies have been studied for more than 300 years; and 3) butterflies are used in many areas of biological research, including embryology, genetics, and biodiversity conservation.

It is unlikely the boy and his mother would have appreciated any of the foregoing facts had I known and shared them last week, but I am glad the encounter caused me to think and explore. In doing so, I discovered many butterfly gardens near me, including the Pilgrim Labyrinth & Butterfly Garden. www.pilgrimcenterkc.org.

THIS WEEK’S ACTIVITY

If a child or friend asked you “Why do butterflies matter,” how would you answer? To learn more, The Language of Butterflies by journalist and best-selling author Wendy Williams is a fascinating read. A fun book for children that also teaches math skills is Ten Magic Butterflies by Danica McKellar.

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[1] Copyright July 28, 2024. Winston Weekly is a weekly newsletter and blog by Alysen Bayles and is available at www.baylesandbruce.com or by e-mail at baylesandbruce@gmail.com. Please feel free to share with the appropriate attribute. Alysen’s views are her own.