Silly Willy

 

March 30th, 2014

The alarm rang and I jumped out of bed. Or at least, that’s how I wished it happened. I rolled over and hit the snooze button before remembering my responsibility. Moaning a little, I eventually get up and walk over to a clear, glass jar.

“Hey, you up, Silly Willy?”

I hold the jar up and look around to try and locate him. Seeing that he is resting on a droopy leaf, I take my shiny, silver tweezers and pick up the leaf. I drop it off in a small, clear container while cleaning out his home. Afterwards, I place Silly Willy back into his main jar. Running to the refrigerator, I get some fresh leaves and place them next to Silly Willy. Suddenly he wakes up, does a little stretch and begins to munch on the crisp leaves.

Silly Willy is a moth caterpillar I found when my mom was washing some vegetables. I don’t mean vegetables like broccoli or potatoes, but when Vietnamese cook, they use vegetables that look like spinach but taste different. They have leaves but we use so many kinds that I don’t know what they are called in English…or in Vietnamese for that matter. Anyway, I picked up the leaf that he was currently on and transferred him into a clear, glass jar with the top off. I knew not to try to pry him off the leaf because his legs might get ripped off. I took some leaves from the plant he had originally been on and added it to the jar so that he would have more leaves to munch off after the one he was on was finished. The jar had been home to two other caterpillars, Squiggles and Wiggles, whom had already transformed and flown away. I already had some basic knowledge of how to raise a moth caterpillar from those two, so I knew what I was doing.

Usually, caterpillars are very picky with what they eat, and will only eat the plant that they were born on. I put three types of leaves into the jar, to see which one Silly Willy would like the most. Strangely, he ate all three leaves! That’s how he got his name, from being a silly little caterpillar. I’ve only had him for five days but he’s made a place in my heart. I’ll be sad when he gets his wings and flies away, but I’ll also be proud of him when he does.

Silly Willy in his small, clear container

Silly Willy in his glass jar (Day 1)

Silly Willy munching on his leaves (Day 5)