Holey, holey, holey: The Care and Feeding of Moths

A wonderful church in the Dallas area stores my 50-some boxes of material possessions in a spare classroom. They keep the door locked and one person has the only key. My treasures have been secure there for nearly a decade now. Or so I thought. But the one thing we overlooked was posting a sign in English, Spanish and Russian: Moths, Keep Out!

Recently I was in Dallas and sorting through my boxes of treasures. And what a surprise awaited me from those pesky little critters. Behold this beautiful wool skirt, lined even. Besides that, moths found my stash of Pendleton wool. But at least they confined their feasting to the top few layers of that fabric before they moved on to greener. . . garments.

Moths mystify me. How do they manage to get into a locked classroom in the first place. How do they sift through boxes of books, photos and cookware and keep searching until they find fabrics. And, connoisseurs of fiber they are, how do they sort through the cottons, the silks and acrylics, saving their appetite for the wool. Those little rascals.

Should come as no surprise though. Jesus himself said, Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal. But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. (Matthew 6: 19-21)

On the plus side, this holey skirt is one fine visual aid for the fleeting nature of things: material things. Especially when that material is wool.

And how about You, dear blog reader. Have you had insects chew up something of yours? How do you store woolens?