by Kelly

Wednesday night Zumba –

Alison, remember our

salsa dancing dates?

by Kelly

* * *

Hello, Miss Monarch.

Mexico is far away.

Fly, I tell her. Fly!

Several years ago, Hubby and I took a trip to Mexico. We did not go to the beach. We went to the central highlands looking for monarch butterflies.

Every year, monarch butterflies from all over North America journey to this part of Mexico in order to pass the winter someplace warm, meet up with other monarchs and breed. The monarchs arrive in Mexico in November and stay until March. Peak monarch-viewing season is January and February.

Hubby and I, though, were in Mexico in November. Our guide promised us that more monarchs were coming, but we could hardly believe how many were already there.

Early morning, pre-sunrise, is the best time to go and see the monarchs. To ward off the night-time chill, the butterflies hang together in clumps so dense that the branches of trees sag underneath the collective weight of the monarchs.

The butterflies are waiting, patiently, for the sun to rise. As soon as a ray of sun hits a clump of hanging monarchs long enough to warm them up, they burst into a cloud of flying butterflies and fill the sky. There are so many of them that you can actually hear their wings beating!

As I look back over my life so far, I know that I have been blessed with many exceptional travel experiences. However, my trip to the monarch reserves in Mexico ranks among the most amazing. It was truly a spiritual experience, which surprised me. I expected to be awed by the sheer number of butterflies I saw. I did not expect to feel like I had had an encounter with the divine.

Ever since that trip, I view monarch butterflies differently. In the past two weeks, I’ve noticed several flittering about as I take my dogs on walks. I stop and watch them dance through the air and I’m convinced that, although they my loop around a patch of flowers, in general they all seem to be moving south. Whey they fly past me, I always make sure to attach a small prayer to each. May you make it to Mexico, I whisper.

by Kelly

garage sale in the

neighborhood — Oh, to sell it

all for wanderlust!

by Kelly

in thirty minutes

we will rush to the airport

but for now we spoon

by Kelly

Arizona heat

pricks my underarms — I squint

into the sun

by Kelly

in Scottsdale, the sun

sinks easily — dinner talk

turns to Hollywood

by Alison

breaking my heart she

cries for her cousin Darcy

the whole long ride home

by Kelly

humid like Bangkok —

my arm hairs prickle, stand up  

straws to the moisture

lone spring kayaker

Chattahoochee Riverbank

panoramic view

.

peaceful travels on

a powerful waterway

carried by currents

.

.Did you know that Cynthia Bohannon-Brown has a photography website? It’s true. Check out more of her work at CBB Studios.

View more haiga by Cynthia.

by Kelly

purple-hued storm clouds

I’m lucid in this moment

Iowa road trip