Travails of a Butterfly

For me, a butterfly will always be the definitive symbol of change. It's true that many species undergo change in their journey from conception to their eventual demise, but for the butterfly the depth and extent of that change is not without struggle - and that is an integral component of its transformation.

There is a story of a man, a boy, and a butterfly that goes something like this...

A young boy happened upon a chrysalis suspended from a branch in his parent's garden. It was cracked but a hair's breadth open and he could see the movement of the butterfly within struggling to break free. In his youthful desire to help the struggling creature, he gently tore open the chrysalis, expecting the butterfly to spread its beautiful wings and fly away. Much to his dismay and sadness, the tiny creature's wings remained closed - wrapped wet and dark around the tiny body. The little boy watched sadly as the creature's movements lessened and soon became still. Crying, the child ran into his home and buried himself in the pillows on the living room sofa, upset that the tiny creature had died.

The boy's grandfather, who happened to be living with the family, went to the boy to see what was wrong. Amidst sobs, his grandson told him what had transpired in the garden. As the grandfather listened to the boy, he reached over to where a small photo album rested on a nearby bookshelf. Searching through the photos, he finally found the ones he sought. There on the photo album's pages were pictures of another young boy - his son, the boy's father - and in the boy's hands was a box. In the box was some grass and a branch. Hanging from the branch was a tiny chrysalis, and resting on a leaf nearby was a beautiful monarch butterfly.

The grandfather told his grandson that once, while he and his son - the boy's father - had been walking in the woods, they had come across a branch on the side of the path that had broken away from a tree during a storm the previous day. Attached to the branch was a small green chrysalis. His son asked if they could bring the branch home so that the chrysalis would be safe and of course had been allowed to.

Days passed slowly in expectation, but one morning the boy noticed that the chrysalis had become transparent and had begun to move. He excitedly ran to tell his father. Over the next few hours, the chrysalis became almost completely transparent. Now they could see the bright orange wings as the creature moved against the thin shell, creating a small tear in the protective cover and eventually breaking free and attaching itself to the dried shell, allowing its wings to harden as they hung down. After so many hours of struggle, the beautiful monarch butterfly was ready to spread its gorgeous orange and black wings and fly away - but they had managed to take a photo just moments before the butterfly went on to explore the world and its freedom.

The grandfather explained that the butterfly needed the struggle of finding its way out of the chryrsalis in order to become the beautiful creature the little boy had expected to see emerge. As the butterfly struggles against its chrysalis, special fluids fill its wings and soften the shell, allowing it to break free. Unless that struggling occurs, the butterfly will never be able to complete its transformation, spreading its wings in a metamorphosis that is unrivaled. While it is hard to watch as a butterfly struggles to emerge, it is important to allow it to happen.

So it is with us. Many times the struggles that we must endure to transform our lives are overwhelming... but they are necessary if we are to spread our wings and fly. Well wishing family and friends may try to "help" in an effort to lessen our load, but in the end we will not grow strong. Our growth will be stunted, and, like the butterfly that wasn't allowed to struggle its way thru its life cycle of changes, we may never become the beautiful creatures that the universe wants us to be.