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An Easter Story
This is an Easter story, a Passover story, an anytime-you-need-to-practice-gratitude story. Once upon a time there was a butterfly who had no wings. She could not fly from here to there, but had to wait for the wind to shake her loose from one flower and carry her to the next. One night she had a dream: She was transformed! She had wings! And the best part? She woke from her dream to find that it was true! She could fly on her own from blossom to blossom! She began to breathe a prayer: “Spirit of wonder! Spirit of love! Thank you for my new life. I will cherish every moment of it, even when my wings become faded and tattered.”
Why are you waiting?
The road your grandmothers walked
is calling your name.
More The Whirligig #261
More Writers’ Pantry #15 at Poets and Storytellers United
Mask

Aztec Ruins National Monument, Aztec, New Mexico
Yellow butterfly,
you rest within the shadows
that mask a stone wall.
Haiku and photo © 2017 by Magical Mystical Teacher
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Thunder
the shadows lengthen
a butterfly lifts its wings—
afternoon thunder
Text and photo © 2015 by Magical Mystical Teacher
More Carpe Diem: “Basho’s ‘Butterflies'”
More Haiku My Heart at Recuerda Mi Corazon
Waste

Indigo bush, Sonoran Desert, Southern Arizona
parched and barren waste—
butterfly seeking nectar
pauses in mid-flight
More Shadow Shot Sunday 2
More Carpe Diem: “Basho’s “A Butterfly Flies'”
Butterfly
“I hear America singing,” Walt Whitman wrote, “the varied carols I hear.”
I too hear singing, but instead of coming from throats of carpenters, masons or boatmen, it comes from sky and star and stone. It comes from weeds and wind and wild things. It comes from crow and cricket and cottonwood. It is the singing of the Desert Southwest, and like the Siren songs that seduced Odysseus and his companions, I cannot ignore it.
I hear it as I help a student proofread her essay. I hear it while I confer with a parent about his son’s behavior. I hear it while I am grading papers.
At day’s end, I slip into comfortable clothing and walk into the nearby wilderness. The stones and weeds and dust greet me with rejoicing. They knew I would come.
the shadows lengthen
a butterfly lifts its wings—
my house is too small
Text and photo © 2015 by Magical Mystical Teacher
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More Carpe Diem: “Kala Ramesh’s ‘Taking Flight'”
Home

Indigo bush frames a desolate winter landscape, Sonoran Desert, Southern Arizona
Until blossom time,
how desolate the landscape
butterflies call home!
Text and photo © 2015 by Magical Mystical Teacher
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More Carpe Diem: “Sogi’s ‘Butterfly Home'”
Wingless

Garden at Sanguinetti House Museum, Yuma, Arizona
seeking one ripe plum
on a level garden path—
wingless butterfly
More Carpe Diem: “Wings”
More Haiku My Heart at Recuerda Mi Corazon
Pause

Indigo bush, Sonoran Desert, Southern Arizona
parched indigo bush—
butterfly seeking nectar
pauses in mid-flight
Text and photo © 2014 by Magical Mystical Teacher
More Carpe Diem: “Butterfly”
Butterfly

Indigo bush, Sonoran Desert, Southern Arizona
parched indigo bush—
butterfly seeking nectar
pauses in mid-flight
More The April Heights: “Butterfly”