Friday, April 13, 2012

L is for Ladybug--and Laughter!

"Ladybug, ladybug, fly away home.
Your house is on fire, and your children are gone..."


Clip art courtesy of http://everything-ladybug.com
This nursery rhyme, traditionally called "Ladybird, Ladybird," has many different variations, but these are the lines I remember my mother reciting nearly every time we saw a ladybug when I was a child. I've learned recently that some of the verses are actually quite grim, like this one:

"Ladybug, ladybug, fly away home.
Your house is on fire;
your children shall burn!"

That's cheery...

I really don't remember my mother telling me more than the first two lines of the rhyme, but those two lines were enough to foster a love for ladybugs that I've carried with me all my life. Now usually, I'm not the kind of person who wants anything to do with insects, but ladybugs seem different somehow, probably because I've always imagined them to be loving moms just trying to take care of their babies--babies who, it seems, may or may not have been left alone and may or may not have been trapped in a fire.

(Perhaps it would have behooved Mother Ladybug to find a babysitter...)

I still think that ladybugs are among the nicer, prettier insects. First, they're often red, which is my favorite color, and second, I've never met one who tried to bite me. As such, I've always been kinder to them than I am to, say, spiders or the many icky, beady-eyed little bugs that my son likes to capture and then bring over for Mommy to have a look at. I've never tried to squish ladybugs, and I'm proud to say that I played no part in the little-known but horrific battle that took place in my childhood home, The War Between the Ladybugs and Dad, the Mad Vacuum Wielder. The silly creatures were confused one year and mistook our house for their own. Maybe they'd lost their home in a fire, in which case maybe Dad could have been a little more understanding.

But I still think Mama should have hired a babysitter...


So what are your feelings about ladybugs? Beautiful friend or pesky foe?


23 comments:

  1. Red lady bugs I like, but the orange Japanese annoying variety can die. They used to invade my bedroom every year.

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    1. Yeah, I'm not sure I'd like them so much if they were invading my bedroom. :)

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  2. i have always loved ladybugs, that is until the book "the shack"--i felt the same way about the little poem :)

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    1. I haven't read that book. Maybe I shouldn't? :)

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  3. I love them! So cute and one of the harmless to us insects. One of the few I don't mind crawling on me, to be honest. :)

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  4. Ladybugs are a symbol of hope to people waiting to complete an adoption from China. Now that I'm home with my little ladybug, I have a soft spot for them.

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    1. That's beautiful! I had no idea they were a symbol of hope. :)

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  5. Dana, I don't think I've ever heard the second line to that. I do like ladybugs. I remember Ralph and me being at Gettysburg one time up on top of Little Round Top near the statue of General Warren. While we listened to the tour guide, we, the statue and the ground suddenly became covered with ladybugs. It was the strangest, but neatest thing. They're supposed to be good luck, so I took it as that.

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    1. That must have been an incredible experience--and tons of good luck!

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  6. The American ones don't bite, but the Asian ones do. I'm trying to visit all the A-Z Challenge Blogs this month from myqualityday.blogspot.com

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  7. They eat aphids...a lot of aphids...so I love them. And they also make for good lifecycle study with kinders.

    Cute post!

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  8. My mom, who is an avid gardener, claims that ladybugs are good for plants. We were always told that the red ones are good and the orange ones are bad. Don't know why.

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    1. I've heard that about the difference between the red and orange ones. I don't remember where, though.

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  9. Ladybugs are one of the few bugs that don't gross me out and they are good for plants too. :)

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    1. Exactly! I don't freak out if a ladybug happens to land on me. :)

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  10. ladybugs are the cutest :)

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  11. Love this entry! I agree, I think Ladybugs are lucky. Especially if I find one crawling on me. They're the only bug who I'll let do that. Lol. :0)

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    1. Me, too! All other bugs--especially spiders--better stay away. :)

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