There’s a time of year in early October where the great Monarch butterflies all migrate. Where their wings catch the sunlight like fluttering sparks on a background of green foliage and blue skies.

    Ellie told me stories about a time when his family had gone on a trip, he couldn’t remember where they were going, but he could remember that something had happened to their car, leaving them stranded on the side of a deserted forested road. He remembers his mom and dad fighting, arguing with each other about whose fault it was and wasn’t. Then he remembers seeing a spark of orange catch the light and he remembers his mom and dad going quiet.

   He remembers looking up and seeing thousands - millions of orange fluttering wings as butterflies caught the breeze and flew high above the trees. His mom and dad also were looking but in awe as butterflies flew past them, like a busy highway going in one direction.

   He remembers that his dad had pulled his mom close to him and she pulled Elliott close to them and they stayed for hours, watching little flames fly.

    He said that that was the best day of his life and that he would give anything to go back there one more time to watch the butterflies float carelessly on the wind setting the forest on fire…

   I wish I could say that this story ended happily. That he got to see the migration for himself again, but I can’t.

Elliott got sicker as the year went on and soon, he couldn’t leave the hospital. At that point, it was just a waiting game.