"Just when the caterpillar thought the world was over, it became a butterfly."
~Anonymous (Found through Megan at http://allaboutjoy.typepad.com)
Change always comes bearing gifts.
~Price Pritchett
Could there be anything better? We’re studying caterpillars and butterflies at preschool right now! In the last week we’ve watched our caterpillars grow every day. Then, they all (except one tiny one we call the Baby) started to change and form a chrysalis. Next, the jar was shaken and two fell and died (We heard a lot of “He/She did it!”). Now, just the Baby is left eating and getting ready to join the rest. What anticipation at preschool! We’re experiencing all parts of life. It’s amazing for the kids, parents and, of course, we teachers.
It’s always magical talking about the life cycle of a butterfly. I wrote my first book on the subject in 4th grade. It has silver wallpaper as part of the cover. I’ve never forgotten that book. It’s in the center drawer of my desk. I wanted to be a writer even back then. It was a step in the direction of my future career that finally started 35 years later!
Studying butterflies got me thinking and comparing their life cycle to the times in life when a person needs to change. For instance, when things just are not going you’re way. When it seems like life as you know it is over. Perhaps it’s the innocent way that you’ve looked at life. Maybe you’ve lost the job you’ve been working at for what seems like forever. Maybe you’re in pain over a relationship or a dream that is over.
I love this quote: “If nothing ever changed, there'd be no butterflies.” ~Author Unknown
Life is pretty amazing! Just when it seems as though life is over (the caterpillar “dying”), a change for the better can take place (the butterfly emerging). It’s like my friend Rob says, “It's never too late for us to morph / evolve and if we are on the right path....if we are true to who we are....we will continue to develop our beautiful souls.”
I’ve been reading PEACE IS EVERY STEP by Thich Nhat Hanh. I love his analogy that change connects your bad time and the good times to come:
“When we have a compost bin filled with organic material which is decomposing and smelly, we know that we can transform waste into beautiful flowers. At first, we may see the compost and the flowers as opposite, but when we look deeply, we see that the flowers already exist in the compost, and the compost already exists in the flowers. When a good gardener looks into her compost, she can see that, and she does not feel sad or disgusted. Instead, she values the rotting material and does not discriminate against it.”
When I was going through a tough time with my teenagers I decided I needed to change how I looked at life. The result was my book, HOW TO BE A ZEN MAMA. Who would have known during that tough time, that it would result in realizing one of my childhood dreams of writing a book?
So, be more like a caterpillar or butterfly. Let your former life be the compost in your garden. Live in the moment and embrace change!! You will look back and be glad you did!
Children understand the magic of butterflies. Here are some interesting butterfly facts to share with your children:
• Butterflies have three body parts, the head, the thorax (middle section) and the abdomen.
• The butterfly's proboscis (the rolled up straw) can be called a tongue. The butterfly uncoils or unrolls it's proboscis to drink nectar or water.
• The difference between moths and caterpillars: Moths have feelers and bodies that are fuzzy, they form cocoons, most fly at night, moths have been around about 100 million more years than butterflies. Butterflies come from chrysalises, they fly during the day, their antennaes have knobs, their bodies are hairless.
• Some butterflies taste with their feet to see if a plant is a good one in which to lay their eggs.
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•Scientists think that the Monarch butterfly’s migration system is located in their antennae.
See more at http://www.thebutterflysite.com
Buy some caterpillars at http://www.stevespanglerscience.com
