Reason #260
Five months ago, I made a permanent decision. Five months ago, I had a small butterfly tattooed on the inside of my left wrist. Black ink in the shape of a creature that symbolizes new life, beauty. I wanted a reminder, a visual that new life is always a possibility. I wanted to be reminded that less desireable things can actually transform into beautiful things. A little symbol of hope for a beautiful, better, new life that was to come.
This afternoon I went to buy flowers to plant in my flower bed. My summer flowers are dead and gone, so it is time to pull them up and replace them with fall flowers. I walked around admiring all of the beautiful fall colors. Orange, red, yellow, deep purple. I made my way over to the mums and noticed that a butterfly was resting on one of the bright yellow plants. The butterfly was dark brown, so the contrast of the yellow flowers definitely made him noticeable. He slowly fluttered his wings back and forth and I couldn't help but watch him in awe. I pulled out my phone to take a picture but couldn't capture him with spread wings. He sat on those flowers ever so still, as if he didn't want to move from them. And I thought it was a little strange to see a butterfly. Truthfully, I really never see butterflies. Isn't it a little late in the year for butterflies to be out and about? This butterfly wasn't the most beautiful one I've ever seen. He didn't have a captivating pattern on his wings, and he wasn't colorful. Simple, solid, and a little plain. But he caught my eye and, to me, there was something really beautiful about him. So I moved closer. I carefully walked around to where he was, doing my best not to startle him, because I wanted to get a good look at him. As I bent down to take a picture, I realized how peaceful he was. This butterfly seemed content right where he was, enjoying life in the stage he is in and making the most of it.
Maybe that's what caught my eye, maybe that's what pulled me in. Peace. Maybe that's really what new life is all about. Peace. Peace and contentment. Because we go through stages that are hard. Stages where life just takes it out of you until you can hardly stand it. And so you enter into this cycle of change. A metamorphasis. It's rough. Not every season is easy, and age will only prove that true. But you're thrusted into a new stage whether or not you're ready for it because life goes on. And maybe, you find yourself in a different stage than when you expected it, just like a butterfly in fall. But as I watched this buttefly, I was reminded that new life can come at any time. That's right, at any moment new life can begin. It doesn't just happen at certain times or certain seasons. New life happens exactly when it's supposed to. And the peace, well it comes, too. Because you eventually get to a stage where the beauty becomes prevalent and is obvious because you've morphed from so much. And you're grateful for it. Grateful that you've had the opportunity to transform into something new and lovely rather than having to stay in a less desireable state. So maybe your wings look a little different than you expected. Maybe the colors didn't come out the shade you thought they might or the pattern isn't as intricate as you would have liked, but there's just something about those flapping, delicate wings that can be captivating. There's something about the peace that comes with finally making it to that stage of new life. And so you sit in contentment and you soak it up. You enjoy the new life you've been given. Because after all that's happened, after all the transformation and change it took to get there, it's only fitting that you make the most of it.
#260 - Because He gives us reminders of new life.
"This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! And all of this is a gift from God..." - 2 Corinthians 5:17-18
This afternoon I went to buy flowers to plant in my flower bed. My summer flowers are dead and gone, so it is time to pull them up and replace them with fall flowers. I walked around admiring all of the beautiful fall colors. Orange, red, yellow, deep purple. I made my way over to the mums and noticed that a butterfly was resting on one of the bright yellow plants. The butterfly was dark brown, so the contrast of the yellow flowers definitely made him noticeable. He slowly fluttered his wings back and forth and I couldn't help but watch him in awe. I pulled out my phone to take a picture but couldn't capture him with spread wings. He sat on those flowers ever so still, as if he didn't want to move from them. And I thought it was a little strange to see a butterfly. Truthfully, I really never see butterflies. Isn't it a little late in the year for butterflies to be out and about? This butterfly wasn't the most beautiful one I've ever seen. He didn't have a captivating pattern on his wings, and he wasn't colorful. Simple, solid, and a little plain. But he caught my eye and, to me, there was something really beautiful about him. So I moved closer. I carefully walked around to where he was, doing my best not to startle him, because I wanted to get a good look at him. As I bent down to take a picture, I realized how peaceful he was. This butterfly seemed content right where he was, enjoying life in the stage he is in and making the most of it.
Maybe that's what caught my eye, maybe that's what pulled me in. Peace. Maybe that's really what new life is all about. Peace. Peace and contentment. Because we go through stages that are hard. Stages where life just takes it out of you until you can hardly stand it. And so you enter into this cycle of change. A metamorphasis. It's rough. Not every season is easy, and age will only prove that true. But you're thrusted into a new stage whether or not you're ready for it because life goes on. And maybe, you find yourself in a different stage than when you expected it, just like a butterfly in fall. But as I watched this buttefly, I was reminded that new life can come at any time. That's right, at any moment new life can begin. It doesn't just happen at certain times or certain seasons. New life happens exactly when it's supposed to. And the peace, well it comes, too. Because you eventually get to a stage where the beauty becomes prevalent and is obvious because you've morphed from so much. And you're grateful for it. Grateful that you've had the opportunity to transform into something new and lovely rather than having to stay in a less desireable state. So maybe your wings look a little different than you expected. Maybe the colors didn't come out the shade you thought they might or the pattern isn't as intricate as you would have liked, but there's just something about those flapping, delicate wings that can be captivating. There's something about the peace that comes with finally making it to that stage of new life. And so you sit in contentment and you soak it up. You enjoy the new life you've been given. Because after all that's happened, after all the transformation and change it took to get there, it's only fitting that you make the most of it.
#260 - Because He gives us reminders of new life.
"This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! And all of this is a gift from God..." - 2 Corinthians 5:17-18