What Butterflies can Teach Us

The tricky fact about growth of any kind is that it hurts.  Actually, improvement can be such a grueling process that we wonder how we’ll ever survive. Transformation may challenge us in the following ways:

• Physically 
• Spiritually 
• Mentally 
• Psychologically

The Necessity for the Growth Process

Numerous individuals are satisfied with their current lives. I submit that many more are not.  There’s a metaphorical landfill of buried dreams and hopes out there somewhere.

Why? We’re intimidated by change. We’re addicted to comfort.

If we refuse to go through the discomfort that any transformation brings, we will not be able to move beyond our present limitations. We cannot reach our dreams if we keep living the way we are. 

Caterpillars and Butterflies

 

Imagine if this caterpillar, pretty in its own right, refused to go through the arduous task of becoming a butterfly. He is content to crawl around and eat leaves all day. That’s all he knows.  He's good with that.

The caterpillar sees no need to rock the boat. He doesn’t know he was meant for something exponentially greater.

Basic science says the caterpillar was meant to be a gorgeous butterfly that will grace the skies. The sky is the limit—literally—for such gorgeous creatures.

The Progression

The metamorphosis procedure isn’t easy; it never is. The caterpillar eats and eats. He forms a cocoon and lives in it for a time. When it is ready to emerge from the pupa as a full-fledged butterfly, it must fight its way out on its own. It struggles and struggles and finally breaks completely out of its shell.

The Purpose of the Process

Are there any shortcuts? No! The butterfly gains the strength necessary to fly by breaking out of the cocoon.

There’s a story about how a man crippled a butterfly by ripping open the cocoon. The man thought he was being kind. However, by circumventing the butterfly’s struggles, he left the butterfly unable to fly. The poor animal’s wings weren’t strong enough to lift it due to the lack of exercise.

My Conclusion

Beauty and victory often follow heavy sacrifice and struggle. A life of comfort produces nothing but more of the same. Most of us dream of a better life. However, many of us aren’t willing to work for it.

Are you prepared to break out of your cocoon?