Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Spread Your Wings


The Old Man and the Butterfly

Once upon a time in a land far far away. There was a wonderful old man who loved everything. Animals, spiders, insects ...

One day while walking through the woods the nice old man found a cocoon.

Feeling lonely he decided to take the cocoon home to watch its beautiful transformation from a funny little cocoon to a beautiful butterfly.

He gently placed the cocoon on his kitchen table, and watched over it for days

Suddenly on the seventh day the cocoon started to move. It moved frantically! The old man felt sorry for the little butterfly inside the cocoon. He watched it struggle and struggle and struggle!

Finally the old man feeling so sorry for the cocooned butterfly rushed to its aide with a surgical scalpel and gently slit the cocoon so the butterfly could emerge.

Just one slice was all it took, and the butterfly broke free from its cocoon only to wilt over in a completely motionless state.

The old man did not know what to think. Had he accidentally killed the little butterfly? No, its still moving a little bit.! Maybe its sick!

Who the heck would know? He was dumbfounded, and quite perplexed! What should I do, he said. Well he felt so sorry for the little creature that he decided the best thing he could do for the butterfly was to place it gently back into its cocoon.

He did so, and placed a drop of honey on it to seal the cocoon, leaving the butterfly to nestle in its natural state.

Well the next day he noticed that the cocoon was moving again. Wow, he said! It moved and moved and struggled and struggled. Finally the butterfly broke free from its cocoon and stretched its wings out far and wide. Big time yawn! Its beautiful wings were filled with wonderful colors! It looked around and took off! It was flying! Its so beautiful! The old man was jumping with joy! Wow!

Go Baby, Go! And that wonderful butterfly did that just that, it flew and flew till it was almost out of the old mans sight. What a joy, he exclaimed!

But then he started to think. What did I do wrong by trying to help that beautiful little butterfly out at first?

The old man went into town. Found the library, and read every book he could on butterflies and cocoons.

Finally the answer appeared. The butterfly has to struggle and struggle while inside the cocoon. That's how it gets its strength. That's just what they are designed to overcome in order to be strong and beautiful.

Well needless to say the old man was shocked, saddened, and somewhat relieved.

Now he knows the reason why they do what they do. It was only his perception that made it appear that the butterfly was having a hard time. Well from then on the old man knew that loving something sometimes means to pray for it and cheer it on!

He realized that God was wonderful, and that sometimes appearances aren't what they seem to be. That we all are beautiful butterflies, even though we have our apparent struggles in life...

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

..Okay!!! I didn't think if I read that story a second time that it would make me choke up..but i was so wrong...
Such a great story..

The one and only Aunt Nancy

Anonymous said...

One upon a time there was this tiny little girl with hair as white as snow and eyes as deep blue as the ocean...she was a smart little girl, cute as all get out and she clung to her mommy as if they were attached somehow through some magnetic forces.
She had an aunt that loved her dearly from the moment she layed eyes on her but the little girl would not leave her mommys side and it mad the aunt sad because she loved her so..
One day the aunt put the little girl in the car where she sat for five minutes and then she cried for her mommy.
The next day they did it again, only this time the aunt started the car...and the little girls eyes got real big and she cried out for her mommy.
The next day, back in the car, on went the motor..and the aunt drove down the long drive way at the granda mama's house and the little girl cried out for her mommy again.
But on the last day....they pulled out onto the busy street and the little girl started to whimper softly..so the aunt turned up the radio full blast and started to sing and dance like only the crazy aunt can do...and it was love from that moment on...
(well except the first time the mommy tried to leave the little girl to go to the store and she only made it to the end of the driveway...okay wait this is a good story and we are regressing..)
Anyways...
The moral of the story is that love takes time .... but its so worth it...and if you are ever wondering why the little girl sings at the top of her lungs and dances about in the car...this is why!
I love you Michelle (the little girl)
Aunt Nancy (the aunt)

Anonymous said...

I had a friend that used to eat the moths that flew around the lights at the baseball games. Just thought you should know that!
:-)
love you guys!