Memories of moths gathering near lights. Recollections of them as fabric-eaters, closet-dwellers, creatures that appear quietly and become noticeable only when they disrupt something. The caterpillar began to take on multiple lives at once. It was a toxic body, a seasonal presence, a childhood memory, a domestic nuisance, and an ecological participant. Each way of knowing offered a way to hold it. None fully accounted for how we had encountered it.
Kaitlyn reflected on growing up in the area and knowing creatures like the caterpillars in ways that extended beyond scientific classification. She spoke about learning through time spent outdoors with her father who is an avid fisher, explorer, and hiker and his stories and shared experiences shaped her relationship with urban natures.
Listening to her, we wondered what it might mean to foster children’s curiosity for insects without immediately enclosing them, without housing them, containing them, or turning them into objects of study.