Fly Away, Jack (or Jacqueline)

Awhile back I wrote about our serendipitous caterpillar excursion in which we found a Monarch caterpillar on a milkweed leaf, brought it home, named it Jack Blackberry and waited to witness this wonder of God's creation transform into a dazzling Monarch butterfly. There were times when I thought this post might be titled, "Rest in Peace, Jack Blackberry," like when we bumped into the jar, and he fell from his leaf onto the hard surface below; or when he stopped eating and didn't move for a day; or when the leaf to which he had attached his chrysalis began to wither and die and needed to be taped to the side of the glass. Fortunately, Jack weathered all those events and finally emerged from his chrysalis early Labor Day morning with the boys there to witness the moment (and I mean moment). As his wings dried, it became clear (from our studies on Monarch gender) that Jack was actually Jacqueline. Picking up where we left off in Meet Jack Blackberry, here's the rest of the story in pictures (and a few words, of course):

After roaming around his jar and refusing to eat, Jack finally found a cozy spot and hung himself upside down in "J" formation.
We kept a very close eye on him for two days while we waited for this amazing moment below. He shed his skin for the final time and formed a gorgeous, green chrysalis.

We were all captivated. It was truly amazing!

Once the chrysalis hardened, it looked like this . . .

Then we waited about a week and a half looking for signs that he was about come out of his chrysalis. Once the chrysalis turned black, we knew we were close.
On Labor Day morning, before some of us were even out of bed, he decided to emerge. The boys were present to see him come out.

We carried him outside to a sunny spot to help his wings dry. During this time, we discovered that Jack was actually Jacqueline. We said our goodbyes, watched him for a long time, and then went about our day.

Sometime later she flew away--maybe to join other Monarchs heading south or to lay 400 eggs that would hatch into caterpillars and then into butterflies. We'll never know. The boys claim to have seen Jack fluttering about the yard. And every once in a while, Micah will say, "I miss Jack Blackberry." He does hold a special place in our hearts--the closest thing to a pet our boys have ever or will ever have:).

Fly away, Jack!