Happy 2nd Year Anniversary!

A Monarch Butterfly on my hand!

Two years ago, on November 21st, 2012, Garden Gallivanter was born. I started this blog as a space to dream and create, while documenting my Gardening Adventures; what a miraculous metamorphosis it has been. The word metamorphosis, means: "changing" its "form". While my physical form remains the same, my spiritual heart has changed so much over these past two years.

I liken my blog adventures over the years to metamorphosis because with the Monarch Caterpillars chomping away at Milkweed in our school garden, and teachers adopting fallen chrysalises to release as Monarch Butterflies, the process of transformation has been on my mind. And, the more I learn about these magnificent creatures, the more I am astonished and grateful to be doing what I love to do.

I feel grateful to just be doing work which still astonishes me and which I am still a student every day. Just this evening, in fact, just before I began writing this entry while sipping my petite shiraz, on this quiet Friday night, I experienced a moment of ah-HA!

Here's the story which built up to this moment of "ah-Ha". So this past Thursday, before afternoon Garden Class with Ms. Bethany's kindergarteners, some students informed me sadly that someone had broken a Monarch chrysalis. I was sad and upset in the moment myself when I heard. We had been re-iterating the concept of respecting nature in light of all the chrysalises forming around the grapevine in the play structure and garden, so naturally, I was irked to learn that one student did not receive the message.

A broken chrysalis in my hand. 

A teacher brought me the broken chrysalis with solemnity. I had to continue teaching, so decided to just take it in and process it later. As I held the half-cracked pupa in my hand, I was perplexed to find nothing inside. Only a clear slime oozed from the green gem. But there was no time to dwell, so I buried it in our Fairy Forest to rest in peace.

In the same class, just after I buried the chrysalis and just after I had confronted the kinder who was accused of breaking the chrysalis, another student in class shared a miraculous fact I did not know about. This student who shared his fact is usually quiet in class, but on this particular day, he raised his hand to share his fact. He explained to our class, after I paused from reading about the Monarchs and their transformation, that while in the chrysalis, the Caterpillar actually disappears and there is only liquid in the pupa for a while, until the Butterfly forms. I was surprised, and in the flurry of squirrely kinder kids ready to get up and move, just said thank you to him for sharing and put the fact in my back pocket to research later.

The pupas are everywhere and bring our lesson of Monarchs to life!

Well, tonight was that later, and all the dots connected themselves! After researching, I discovered that my student was indeed correct! After the pupa forms, enzymes in the pupa actually break down the tissue of the caterpillar, so the caterpillar essentially disappears and becomes this rich liquid medium of embryonic cells for 3-4 days. These cells form "imaginal disks" of cells,  which will transform into the wings, legs, antennae and other parts of the new Butterfly.

Found right on the tee-pee in our garden!

About a week later...you can see wings!!

On the same day, she emerged during class!

This caterpillar goes through complete transformation. It's muscles, nervous system and even heart completely change in over 10 to 14 days or so. This is truly magical to me, demonstrating nature's remarkable power. And I, because of my wonderful place in the world, calling myself a "Garden Teacher," got to touch this perplexing, miraculous liquid of transformation, this elixir of life.

Despite me feeling upset at one of my kinder student's curiosity of this green jewel and breaking it, if it weren't for the broken chrysalis brought to me which I could see for myself nothing was inside, learning this fact to be true would have not been the same. If it also were not for my other kinder student during the same class who shared his fact about what happens in the chrysalis, I would not have done the research and made the connection to what I saw in the palm of my hand, and what I had read.

Curious sister gardeners hold a Monarch!

My heart has changed because of what my students have taught and inspired me to do, see, feel, smell, discover, and touch, in the garden, about the garden, and for the garden.

Because of them, despite some seemingly sad situations such as a chrysalis breaking, I got to see the inside of a chrysalis, which I may have never been able to see. Everything in life happens for a reason. I am sure of it now. The garden and my role as a garden teacher has allowed me to touch so many hearts, reached so many dreams, that I hope the metamorphosis never stops.

As I celebrate the 2nd Anniversary of Garden Gallivanter and my own Golden Birthday on November 26th when I turn 26, I am grateful for all my garden adventures and toast the beginning of many more.




*Photos by Tiffanie Ma