I have seen probably a half dozen butterflies the last few days. They seem to hang near the road and fly across when vehicles pass (much like winged deer). I am not sure if the over abundance of these winged insects is to be blamed on the season or the location. Either way, whatever the reason, I am responsible for the death of atleast four of these beautiful creatures.

They say when a butterfly lands on a person it is supposed to be considered a good sign. I have been told that the fact that such a gentle bug would go out of it’s way to perch on ones person means one is more kind.. or something like that. I’m not sure what it says about butterflies that fly directly at a motorcycles windsheild.

The sighting of nature didn’t stop at the butterflies though. The other day I had a friend talk to me on length about the sighting of salamanders. He was telling me how many he had recently spotted at his house and I told him I hadn’t seen one in years. I also told him that I heard they were a sign of healthy water (Is that a thing? I don’t know). Anyway, so my dry streak on salamander spotting is now over. A few days ago I spotted two of them. One was alive and spry, wandering around in the evening eating bugs. The second was found in the morning, dead.

The curiousty of revered critters dying.. this has been puzzling me. What conclusion does one draw when something considered a sign of good fortune winds up dead?

I had an interesting discussion a few days ago in a small town In Minnesota with a woman that was kind enough to let me sleep at her place. Her son is a friend of mine, but I had not yet met her. When my future plans with Little Wing became a topic of discussion she had strong opinons involving the danger of motorcycles. She was sweet, but also wanted it known that she didn’t want her son to get one. I responded politely with the response I always give to knee jerk, anti-motorcycle, feedback. I told her I loved riding, it makes me happy. I told her if I were to be seriously hurt it would be something I was ok with because atleast it happened while I was smiling. Her response was an interesting one. She was not wooed by my reasoning and instead told me ‘No that’s not how that works. You are not an island onto yourself.’

I thought about that. I am not an island onto myself. Thusfar the whole adventure has involved crashing on other peoples couches. I am not a woman of independent means right now, that was sort of the point, to give up stability in lieu of adventure. However, I am just me on the bike.

Her point was that when a person dies they aren’t the only one who loses out. All those close to the individual also lose something. That being the case she says individuals are not islands onto ourselves.

Like I said, I have thought about this. I sort of disagree.

The butterflies that got hit by my windshield were beautiful things with positive vibes sorrounding them and then they died. The salamander was not to different. Good things that died. The butterflies probably pollinated some flowers and the salamander probably ate some bugs. They effected change while they were here and now they are gone. One died while ingesting dinner I would suspect and the others died while flying.

I guess one could choose to feel bad for the fact that these beautiful creatures passed. One could choose to shed tears over the loss of life and talk about how sad it made them. However I personally don’t feel sad for the loss. I think it was great that they lived and performed good things while they did.

I am of the opinion that we may not be islands onto ourselves, but happiness still comes from within.  All the people who are offering me kindness are not making me happy – I am not making them happy. We all are choosing to be happy for ourselves. I am choosing to be happy about riding Little Wing while the woman chose to be worried for me. Having her happiness levels determined by my choices is not something I can help her with.

No matter how sad I think small creatures passing is I don’t let it effect me. I find that riding down the highway tearing up about squashed butterflies is not conducive to good riding.

So, what conclusion does one draw when something considered a sign of good fortune winds up dead? I don’t know, I don’t draw any. Death is just a natural extension of life.

This is a subject I have been trying to find peace with for a long while. Riding bike has really put it into perspective recently. I don’t mind death. I don’t mind that people want to constantly inform me that there are worse things then the final end, and that I should consider my loved ones. I just want everyone to know, I’m not an island, but I am a very happy subsection of village.

Butterflies and Salmanders and the happiness from within. It is all part of a larger picture, and these are just the musings of a chick on a motorcycle who has a lot of time to think. Please feel free to draw your own conclusions. I’m just drawing on Little Wing.