The Great Migration...

One of the great things about living in Ventura 

is 

 the beautiful Monarch butterflies come to winter here along the coast

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There is a lovely grove nearby where you can go watch them

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It is all roped off so you can't get to close...which is a shame

but today I learned why

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Some lame  

I mean...unaware person was throwing rocks at the butterflies

to make them fly around for pictures

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Seriously!

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It was heart breaking

So

of course

with my New Year Promise in mind...

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I just HAD to take a stand for the little creatures

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The look I gave the woman would have melted steel

and she walked away with a rock in her hand

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I half expected her to throw it at me for wrecking her fun

If you look closely 

you will see thousands of butterflies clinging to the eucalyptus leaves

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this is where they rest

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They hang like garland from the tree

It is hard to get good shots of them 

because they are so far away

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 moving

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and small

But...if you are patient

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and wait

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until the light is just right

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You might get a couple of awesome shots

Their journey is really quiet remarkable
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They don't live long enough to make the return trip
but
somehow their offspring know the way back
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 it just reminds me
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 our own inner guidance is

a miracle

if we will only listen
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It stands to reason
IF
a butterfly with the brain the size of the head of a pin
can find its way back over 3,000 miles
to a place it has never been

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then surely
we humans with a far more complex brain
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and using our HEART as compass
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can figure out how live more simply, sustainably, and with
a deeper consciousness
for our own well being and future...
~

Read more about their fascinating migration here:

http://www.worldwildlife.org/species/finder/monarchbutterflies/monarchbutterflies.html://