April vagaries

The unpredictable April weather makes it difficult to determine the destination for a trip.
Today we took a route different from the ordinary and ended up on a hill which, allegedly, is a place with powerful energy. An ancient shrine used to stand on top, as the word has it, but, as in so many other cases, a catholic church was built on its groundings. As we arrived, the sky had been closing and a cold breeze blowed across the slopes. There were signs of showers in the vicinity. Still, I climbed toward the top of the hill, admiring the flowers and greening trees as I went. A few gnats were dipping into dandelions, a bumblebee hummed around the dog violets. But as I approached the summit, I was stunned by the sight. A number of swallowtail butterflies flitted around the top, swirling, fluttering, pausing on the blossoms, then flitting away. They were all camera shy, though, and wouldn't let me take a decent photo. Then I passed between the church and the small stone wall surrounding it. And there, on the gravel, was another butterfly, flapping its wings but not moving anywhere. As I approached, the camera at the ready, it paused and let me take a few photos. Then I tried to move it from the ground onto the wall and it still didn't fly away. I was beginning to fear something was wrong with it but it looked perfectly formed without any visible injuries. It let me take another set of photos on the wall. I couldn't help but thank it and wish it well, and as soon as I did so in my mind, it lifted off the wall and fluttered into the sky. And meanwhile, the rain had moved to other places.