Furry Caterpillar

After being rudely awakened by one of those recorded spam phone calls this morning, the family and I trooped down to the clubhouse of our apartment complex to enjoy some free breakfast. We ate cheese, fruit and pastries in the warm sun of the pool patio. While Todd played in the adjacent playground, I suddenly spied something small and brown crawling VERY fast along the ground! I crowded in for a closer look, wondering what it was-- a centipede? Todd provided the answer: "A caterpillar!" I watched in fascination as he crawled rapidly across the playground and disappeared into the bushes. He was brown and furry and looked like a little cactus, but the cutest part of all was his big, black buggy eyes! He looked just like the star of the famous children's book, "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" (except he was dark brown instead of green):



Cuter still? The way his head moved around as he took in the surroundings, figuring out the best way to navigate over the grass (no small obstacle course for such a tiny creature!) He looked just like a little dog, sniffing his way around as he explored the giant world around him.

Then... I decided I wanted to take a closer look at this little critter, so I got a leaf and placed it in his way, forcing him to crawl on it. I lifted it, examined the bug, and then-- he slipped and fell OFF the leaf and onto the grass, where he lay perfectly still! I only hope he was playing dead (like roly polys do) and wasn't really knocked out by the fall! Grass is soft, but who knows what it feels like to a little insect. I felt bad. Poor little guy! I hope he's okay. Allan has decided not to let me mess around with nature anymore. He has a point. We humans are notorious for upsetting the balance of nature-- from interrupting a tiny caterpillar's journey and dropping him, to polluting the oceans and destroying wildlife homes. What a shame. Animals are such fascinating creatures.

I hope the little caterpillar finally got up and made his way to wherever he was going. He was the cutest insect I'd ever seen, especially when taking on his dog-like antics. And I still think he's cuter now than when he will morph into a butterfly later on. Butterflies are cool and pretty, but they are not "awwwww!" cute :-D