Fuzzy Antennae

A moth got in the house last night. R spotted it & unsure whether to be afraid or not asked, "What's that, what's that?" So, I told him it was a moth. "What's a moth, he queried apprehensively. "A moth is just a butterfly that flies at night," I replied. I thought that was an appropriate, feel-good explanation for a butterfly-loving three year old who should have already gone to bed. T, however, felt it was necessary to correct me and piped up with "No, it's not, Mom. Moths and butterflies, although related, are not the same." "Shh, they are the same," I replied desperately hoping T would get the hint. It was bedtime; and, I just wanted R to go to bed! T looked at me as if I were out of my mind and reiterated his statement followed by a list of physical differences as R chimed in with "they not the same" & " moths got fuzzy antenna!" "I know, I know. Alright, they're not the same," I cried in defeat. R, pitying me (with my being so ignorant and all,) took it upon himself to enlighten me as to the differences among the species found within the order Lepidoptera. I spent the next twenty minutes looking at pictures of moths and butterflies with R while he repeatedly reminded me that moths have fuzzy antennae. So, I sat there while he insisted on closely inspecting each photograph for the presence of those infernal fuzzy antennae & identifying each one as either moth or butterfly. He made certain I fully understood which was which before moving on to the next picture. Only after he was satisfied that I was no longer ignorant of the difference between a moth and a butterfly did he grant me a nod of approval and kiss me goodnight.

I stomped off to bed resenting T for getting me into that mess. But, then again, it was I who had emphasized the difference to T back when we were studying insects and while trying to impress upon the kids the magnitude of nature's diversity. Why shouldn't T have looked at me like I was crazy? I had taught him one thing; but there I was telling R something opposite.