Metamorphosis (you can do hard things)

Several years ago, I was presented with a challenge, one which was estimated to last about a month.  Being the self-growth junkie I am, I was optimistic that at the end of the calendar I would be rewarded with the sweet fruits of my sacrifice.  However, I also struggle inherently with patience, and with the idiom “a watched pot never boils” trying to beat itself into my psyche, I didn’t know how I would get thru.  

Serendipitously, the day before this journey was to start, my family visited our Natural History Museum’s annual bug festival.  Nerd that I am, I purchased a pin sized caterpillar from a vendor.  It was a black freckle of a being, easily mistaken for a piece of dirt.  We brought it home and placed it in an old plastic fish tank, and repleted its food source daily from wild fennel growing in our neighborhood.  Over the next few weeks, as it ravenously munched away, it plumped into its velvety chartreuse form.  Its pace halted, and overnight it pupated into an immobile chrysalis. No longer could I monitor its growth or change on a daily basis.  For days I nervously watched and waited, “whats’ happening inside?  Is it still alive, or did it perish?” (I was like the old man in the story line, restless and anxious to rescue the struggling creature. But I held back, trusting that the struggle to break free is the birthright and gift of the butterfly himself)

Alas, a few weeks later, as the veil became transparent, emerged a perfectly formed swallowtail.  We took his outside and thanked him for what he revealed to us, and watched as he hesitantly and then courageously took flight.  

It was almost exactly 30 days, this transformation from the speck of a being to a magnificent strong yet delicate butterfly.  It reminded me of how much growth can happen in such a short time.  Oftentimes, especially when we experiencing hardship, we are challenged and yearning to “see” progress, as reassurance that we are on the right path.  However, if we recall the metamorphosis story (or, better yet find ourselves a caterpillar to “do it with us” when we take on difficult things), it might give us the strength we need for the final push.