Lessons & Reflections from the National Butterfly Center

Last night as I locked the Visitor's Center, I heard Taps played at the Rio Grande Valley State Veterans' Cemetery, nearby. The lonesome sound of the solitary bugler was answered by the howls and yelps of a dozen coyotes, waking for their evening activities. A Grey Hawk rested at the pond, reflecting, and three racing cyclists rode by in formation. One of those cyclists, James Garza, donated the beautiful stone marker that sits at the entrance to the National Butterfly Center.

James enjoys riding out here because he never knows what he'll see, and he hopes green spaces like ours remain a part of the Rio Grande Valley landscape, forever. Still, we sit in a precarious place: at the crossroads of wilderness and development, between the beautiful Bentsen Palm subdivision and over 3,000 acres of state park and federal preserve. The Hackberry Trail that borders us to the east, provides woodland habitat for dozens of species of creatures who've lost their homes to commercial farming—a South Texas staple, thanks to our 365-day/year growing season; but places for wildlife to increase are shrinking. Honestly, it's not something I gave much thought to before coming to work out here....

It's been a little over three months since I joined the NBC, and every day is an adventure, whether I am leading a group of school children with magnifying glasses on a hunt for caterpillars, or meeting our most knowledgeable members. I am rediscovering FUN, too, as I grow in my own awareness; and I have become obsessed with encountering Bobcat, on the property. Last week, I got to play with a little brown snake in the garden, and almost daily, I go out to the palapa to see if our resident family of screech owls has returned. I joke with my kids about setting up a permanent campsite here, and the boys are ok with the idea; the teenage daughter, not so much!

As always, I invite you to come for a visit. I can't wait to show you this super special place!