Lessons Learnt from the Lime Plant

[can you spot our fat green caterpillar?] I think this is the 5th we have seen

A rather strange post in the middle of CNY. But our routine for this Chinese New Year which we have chosen to make it as close to "normalcy" as possible has enabled me to post those entries that I have always wanted to post. First of such, is the lessons learnt from the lime plant. Daniel bought this lime plant at the end of last year. His plan was to create a corridor where the children could observe creation and it's natural cycle. And I have to say that the $15 spent was worth every cent and infinitely more. 

It never fails to amaze me how much one can learn [old or young] just by observing and questioning the things around us. And it never fails to amaze me how much of true learning happens along-the-way and that such facts remains in our recesses for life as compared to the many facts which we have memorized through rote learning and find much pains to recall, especially when there is no need for such facts. I was secretly pleased during one of Sarah's night routine. As usual, she would line her stuff toys and my pillows and bolster around her to create a little house. That night, she created a little garden. And she was happily talking to her toys and I heard her saying, "This is my garden...Butterflies lay eggs." It was a pretty simple sentence but I was floored by the ease with which she said it. We have never made her memorized facts about butterflies. But as she observed her lime plant, and noticed black little round things on the leaves of the lime plant, she asked Daddy what it was. It was a simple answer to her question that lodged in her mind and it became a learning point that was never labored upon. Learning about butterflies for Sarah was so easy and comfortable. As the eggs grew into caterpillars, Sarah would go out to the garden everyday and see the caterpillar grow as it chomps on the leaves. She was amazed at how fast and fat it grew. But Sarah also saw many caterpillars come and go. Some were destroyed, others whose fate we never knew. 

All I can say is that it is truly an amazing plant which yields amazing caterpillars and teaches amazing lessons.  Well, the learning was not reserved for her alone, but Daddy, Mommy all learnt something new about butterflies.

Some facts about lime butterflies and lime plant we learnt from observation:

1. They can smell a lime plant from faraway. Our plant on the 16th floor attracts butterflies from the greens downstairs.
2. Butterflies lay eggs.
3. Eggs grow into caterpillars.
4. Caterpillars really eat a lot of leaves.
5. New leaves sprout out quickly from the lime plant.
6. Most caterpillars never make it to butterflies.
7. Caterpillars are often eaten by passing birds. How the birds spot them, I do not know.
8. Some caterpillars are caught by wasps because wasp need caterpillar's body to lay eggs in. [this was a lesson culled from the boat too]. 
9. Caterpillars turn into butterflies [but we observe that this is a rarity rather than a norm because most caterpillars do not survive the attacks from their predators]

Our latest fat, green caterpillar [Pika, named by Sarah] disappeared again much to our disappointment. We are resolved to helping it morph into a butterfly the next time we spot new caterpillars. Guess what? This morning, Sarah shouted, "Caterpillar!" As we peered at what she was pointing at, we all rejoiced to find a new brown caterpillar on the leaf. New life - New Hope. 

The Beauty of God's Creation!