Many people have asked me “Why the butterfly?” as the symbol or logo for my website. The butterfly holds quite a bit of significance to me, and this story will explain why:
A man found a cocoon of a butterfly. One day a small opening appeared. He sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole. Then it seemed to stop making any progress. It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it had and it could go no further.
Then the man decided to help the butterfly, so he took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon. The butterfly then emerged easily. But it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings. The man continued to watch the butterfly because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to be able to support the body, which would contract in time.
Neither happened! In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings. It never was able to fly.
What the man in his kindness and haste did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the tiny opening were God’s way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon.
Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our life. If God allowed us to go through our life without any obstacles, it would cripple us. We would not be as strong as what we could have been. And we could never fly. (author unknown)
Having faced my own struggles and knowing I have come out of them so much stronger, I feel the butterfly is perfect for my website and symbolises the message I am trying to portray!
Beautiful story. I love butterflies because it is the only living thing that I know of that can totally transform itself into something very different. I too have a butterfly on my website to show the transition from one form to another-in my case its relationships and families.
Thank you for sharing your beautiful story.
Thank you Claudette. When I first read the story I was very touched because it was at a time where I had just overcome some huge life struggles.
Since that time, the butterflies have held significant meaning for me and probably always will!
By the way, what a fabulous niche you have chosen to work with! My husband is a step father to my daughter, and we have had our fair share of “issues” to deal with, although for the most part it’s really good!