Butterfly

The Ukazoo Journey-“Snapshots and Memorabilia”

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The Butterfly

The Ukazoo Journey-“Snapshots and Memorabilia”

Third week of Ukazoo Art Exhibit

“The Butterfly”

 

As I worked my way to the bottom of the box of mail, sitting flat were a couple of manila envelopes. I opened the first one, post marked Idaho.

Enclosed was a letter and a second, tad smaller, manila envelope. I opened the letter and a smile crossed my face. The letter was from one of the Park Rangers I met during my stay at the Nature Observation site in the Idaho Panhandle National Forest.

An Interlude: For those new to the Journey to Ukazoo, this ‘Stop’ was Slide 20, “Caterpillar”.

Leonard, one of the on-site rangers, wrote to give me an update on the rare caterpillar they had secured during my stay. Leonard mentioned that everyone was doing well and once the ‘very hungry’ caterpillar was acquainted with his new surroundings and unlimited access to his favorite food, Leonard busied himself with standard protocol to file a report on the Caterpillars’ capture/exchange events and agreements that had ensued. It was during the Caterpillar’s metamorphosis into a Butterfly that he received a follow-up email from the ‘Higher Up’s’ in Washington, informing the Park Rangers, once finishing our observation, we were to disregard our promise to “Bob” and his friends of releasing the Butterfly.

The Government email continued to inform us, we would receive, arriving by a military helicopter courier, an Army issue parcel of supplies/tools and an enclosed Six Chapter, 44 page SOP (standard operating instructions) booklet. According to this email, once we took procession of the parcel, the butterfly would be sedated using chloroform and a very, very small hankie. Upon sedation, using six Army issue, 1 3/16” plastic straps and following the SOP’s Chapter two, 17 step instructions on the correct procedure to fasten the straps to each leg, the Butterfly would be safely held on an Army issue 8” x 8” muted green foam-core board.

We were then to insert Butterfly and board into the Army issue 8 1/2” x 8 1/2” combat-tested clear plastic case with uniformly spaced air holes and attached combination lock. Once locked, burn the paper slip containing the secret combination and bury the ashes in a three foot deep hole using the supplied standard Army issue folding shovel. Pack the plastic case in the Army issue 10 1/2” x 10 1/2” cardboard box with aligned matching air holes. Per Chapter five, seven-step instructions, fill the surrounding one inch void borders with Army issue green packing peanuts-adhering to the Step Six warning not to impair air channels. Return any unused packing peanuts along with shovel in the separate self addressed mailer.

Once accomplished, affix the supplied mailing label and return the box to Washington for further extensive testing of the Butterfly, related to any military weapon advantages’ that can be extracted.

Well, Leonard’s letter went on, all the rangers and park personnel, involved in the agreement/promise with “Bob” didn’t hesitate to voice their opposition with breaking their word. A plan  formulated and we used the Park’s backhoe to rip a hole out of the corner of the building that housed the “just released Butterfly”. We took a picture of the jagged gapping hole and sent it off to Washington with a letter explaining how, during the night, an equally ‘very hungry’ renegade alligator chewed a hole in the side of the building and ate the caterpillar before he morphed into a butterfly. Thus, we are extremely sorry to write, we will not be able to sent you anything other than return of the parcel and SOP booklet. Furthermore, request additional funding to launch a new, but we fear unfruitful, search for a replacement of the now devoured caterpillar.

Closing, Leonard’s letter mentioned that before the “release the Butterfly” party, which “Bob”, his friends and their wives attended, we took a few pictures of the Butterfly. Enjoyed your visit here and sending you one of the pictures. Since we told our ‘higher up’s’ a fib, please keep all this between us.

As I have, on a few occasions during the Journey to Ukazoo, been asked to keep something ‘under my hat’, rest assured a secret is safe with me.

This is the picture of the Butterfly they enclosed in the smaller envelope.

 

Art notes:

All images and text are copyright Craig L Haupt

Postings of “Ukazoo Journey” Slides are every Monday Evening.

New arrivals to the “Journey” please view:

Blog: http://www.craiglhaupt.com  –  “Journey to Ukazoo”

See “Slide One” for a brief synopsis.

OPENING ART RECEPTION of New Art Works, Saturday, March 15th, 2014, 5:00 to 8:00 P.M., at Ukazoo Book Store, Towson, MD 21204

 

Journey to Ukazoo-Slide 20

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Caterpillar

Journey to Ukazoo

Slide 20: Caterpillar

 

Aware of the direction of my Journey, the Ranger at Cape Disappointment recommended a Nature Observation site deep in the Idaho Panhandle National Forest that specialized in finding rare Arthropods.

Making my way deep into the forest on unimproved roads with only the ranger’s hand drawn map, I arrived at a very modern but environmentally designed series of buildings tucked away in a small stream fed valley. While not an advertised tourist spot, the resident park personnel welcomed the occasional visitor that went out of their way to find this place.

After spending a very full day of extremely informative discussions, walks, and viewing collections of unique and rare species, they expressed a concern about the difficulty navigating the forest roads back to town in the darkness and offered a spare bed to spend the night.

Before turning in, we sat around an evening campfire and they proceeded to tell me a story of having received several hand delivered letters over the past two weeks. The letters, from an unknown source, outlined the chance to receive for observation via a trade, an extremely rare caterpillar that the park personnel have been trying to capture since the first sighting several months ago.

The trade, “Bob” (the name they applied to the unknown letter writer) proposed, consisted of one case of hand lotion, six pairs of leather work gloves for him and a few friends, and assurances that the caterpillar had to be released once he morphed into a butterfly. Release was critical to the pollination of an equally rare flower that served as an important food source to Bob and his friends. The lotion and gloves, the letters stated, were essential to help ease up on blisters, winter’s split skin and the ‘holding rough hands’ complains from their wives.

With assurances of terms confirmed, the last letter they received two days ago, outlined coordinates to a location to construct a blind, to both observe the capture and complete the trade.

We awoke the next morning to find a letter had arrived, informing them to be at the newly constructed blind within two hours, along with the lotion and gloves. Since I was present, they allowed me to tag along.

Within an hour of occupying the blind we became aware of the caterpillar, dropping down to the end of a thorn covered branch by a silken thread. At that moment out of the shadows of the underbrush emerged a manlike creature with a shell body and no legs. Slowly making his way up the same branch using his hands, we also noticed four tentacles unfurl from the top of the shell, one holding a leaf that perked up the caterpillars attention. Another tentacle dropping down behind his back, held a net.

I took this picture a split second before a very hungry caterpillar made a move for the leaf and with one quick motion snatched up in the net. In a second motion, Bob jumped to the ground and handed the net and caterpillar to the rangers and with no words exchanged, accepted the lotion and gloves and quickly disappeared back into the forest.

Upon my preparing to leave this morning, after spending a second night, I was informed another letter from Bob had arrived. This one, they read, contained thanks for the lotion and gloves for the cold winter ahead and, to everyone’s delight, the hint of one day sharing one of those campfires they have watched from a distance.

 

Art notes:

All images and text are copyright Craig L Haupt

Postings of “Journey to Ukazoo” Slides are every Monday Evening.

Website: http://www.clhaupt.com