This morning I watched a butterfly lilt across the pond at the base of Equinox Mountain. At first I thought it was a small bird, fluttering in the sky until I looked more closely. I watched the paper-thin wings fight the light southerly wind and could only think how this small creature was not going to have an easy time. Maybe it lingered too long sucking nectar from my Buddleia (Butterfly Bush) and Hydrangea flowers.
Last week, heavy rain flooded the Battenkill River, and a stream of water washed through my vegetable garden, taking with it soil and freshly planted carrots, peas and lettuce. Rescue efforts focused on people and homes, bridges and roads while Orvis employees was thinking about the natural world. Volunteers stood on the river banks and flooded fields in hip boots scooping up and rescuing a thousand trout to move them to safer ground. Nearby, The Equinox School of Falconry filled with water, and a brigade of handlers transferred the magnificent birds to dry garages and barns where they will remain indefinitely.
The storm brought damage and hardship, yet is also building inner strength and community. Watching the butterfly this morning, I was reminded of the story of the man who helped a butterfly emerge too soon from its cocoon. A butterfly struggles to force its body through a very small opening and when it stops and seems like it is not going any further, it is nature’s way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings so that it will be ready for flight. He did not realize that the struggle a butterfly endures so he helped the delicate creature emerge but it could not fly.
Sometimes, struggles are exactly what we need in our lives to move us to higher ground. Nature happens and we can’t control the outcome, yet our natural instinct is to reach out and try to help. With adversity comes change and inner strength. There is a lot to learn from a butterfly.
