My oldest has been learning about metamorposis in school, so I decided to order some caterpillars for my girls to watch as they change into butterflies. They LOVED it. They would check everyday and Aana would teach us all about the caterpillars. We learned that caterpillar waste is called "Fras."...and SO much more. She is reading insect encyclopedias in her free time, so she was full of fun information. After about a week, they got into their "J" shapes and became a chrysalis. My girls checked on them several times and day and we were so lucky that we were in the room watching while three of them emerged as butterflies. They are now outside and hopefully safe. Do you know butterflies only live a couple of weeks? That was news to me.
It got me thinking though...about the amazing processes of change that occur in our lives. In mortality, a large part of our existence is to have experiences, grow, and change. I have watched some of the most amazing transformations of lives, hearts, attitudes, and more...in my life and those around me. I am grateful for those experiences that push me out of my comfort zone and cause me to change...and polish my rough edges. For some reason our family's butterflies reminded me of our potential...as God's children...to grow and learn to fill our roles as the beautiful individuals he knows we can be.
3 comments:
Interesting. On the other end of things I learned last year that tagged Robins have lived up to 14 years in some kind of a closed in environment.
This reminds me of one of my favorite Elder Wirthlin talks -- April conference 2000. He gives the analogy of turning into a butterfly -- and without the effort of getting out of the cocoon...the butterfly couldn't reach it's beautiful potential. In it, he says, "You are stronger than you think." That was a very difficult time in my life and I can't tell you how many times I have used that line as my mantra. YOU ARE STRONGER THAN YOU THINK...I think you are amazing.
Oh shoot...I'm signed in as Greg...again. -- Tacie
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