Bailey the Butterfly

                                              Bailey the Butterfly

                                              By Daryl Campbell



         Bailey is a butterfly.

         A beautiful, floating butterfly with yellow, blue, and red circles on her wings.

         She's young, coming out of her silky blanket that morning, and the sun is warm on her wings.

         Looking down, Bailey sees she’s so high up. Wiggling a bit, her new legs feel awkward, she steadies herself on the small branch to look through the trees for her mother.

         “Mom? Mom, where are you?” Her voice washes away in the wind.

         Bailey's hungry and needs to fill her empty stomach. Carefully, she makes her way to the end of the branch.

         The world changes at the end of the branch. Leaves grow in large clumps and the wind whispers warnings. She sees insect families playing games, lying in the grass, and eating from a tall can on the ground below.

         “There’s the food.” Seeing bright yellow flowers near the feeding can, her eyes open wide. “Now to get down there.”

         Bailey has to jump, she knows this. There’s no other way to get the food. She isn't sure about her wings yet and flaps them a bit to feel how they move.

         “If only mom were here,” she sighs.

         Readying for the long drop, she bends her legs, spreads her wings, and jumps. She’s brave, but closes her eyes as she tumbles through the air.

         Her shoulders tense as wings catch the wind. Bailey smiles and lets her wings carry her up, but not so high.

         “Bailey.” She hears someone’s mom calling them. “Bailey, where are you?” She laughs, bits of floating things sticking to her teeth.

         Someone’s in trouble.

         After a few minutes of flying, Bailey aims for the flowers. She straightens her body to land and slows by flapping her large wings.

         The ground grabs her and she trips, rolls through the grass, and comes to a stop near the flowers. Bailey shakes off the embarrassment of a bad landing and drinks from the sweet nectar inside the flower.

         “Mmm.” It’s good.

         “Bailey.” The voice is behind her. “I've been calling for you. Honey, you scared me. There are birds around here.”

         Bailey turns to see a butterfly standing there, scowling at her.

         “Mom.” She’s a pretty mom: wide wings with green and white patches and outlined in gold.

         “You scared me, Bailey. I didn’t expect you to be up so early.”

         “I was hungry.” She swallows some more nectar.

         “Did you have trouble getting out of your blanket?" Mom asks. "It usually takes a little longer.”

         “No, but I was so high up and I didn’t see you anywhere,” she answers.

         “I know, Sweetheart, and I’m sorry.” She hugs Bailey. “I’m here now. I want to show you the world.”

         Bailey’s mom takes her to meet the families under the trees.

         They meet Mrs. Cockroach and her seven children: two boys and five girls.

         She plays hopscotch with Jill, a red ladybug, and Jerry, a nervous honey bee.

         Then they meet Mr. and Mrs. Dragonfly. They have twin daughters, Anabelle and Liandra. Bailey likes them most.

         Dinner time comes and Bailey and her mom go to a garden. They drink from the flowers there: blue ones, orange ones, and the tastiest white ones.

         After they eat, the butterflies spend the early evening floating in a purple sky. They watch parents gather their young and lead them home. They look at the different trees and flowers growing in the park. Most important, they spend the last of the day together.

         When the moon peeks in from the sky, Bailey’s mom takes her to an opening in the trees. It’s filled with pink and white, star shaped flowers. Her mom leads her to one and tucks her in between soft petals.

         “It’s been a big day, Bailey. It’s time to get some sleep.” Smiling, Mom kisses her head.

         “You’ll be here in the morning?” Bailey asks.

         “I’ll be here, Bailey.”

         “I forgot my blanket.” She suddenly remembers.

         “It’s okay. You don’t need it anymore. You’re already such a big girl.” Mom's proud.

         “I want to see about those birds tomorrow. I know I’ll have to fly high, but I can do it,” Bailey says.

         “Birds are dangerous, Bailey, and it’ll be very high. We can talk about it in the morning,” Mom tells her.

         “I’m not scared. I can do anything.” Bailey insists. “But be here in the morning.”

         “I promise, Honey. You’ll never be alone again.”