07 February, 2010

impossible. . . except that it's not.

Have you ever watched a caterpillar
form a chrysalis?

. . .

emerge a butterfly?

It is miraculous.

The caterpillar,
somehow,
creates this tiny sack. . .
and I mean tiiiiiiiiny compared to the ginormity
of his caterpillar body.

he seals his LARGE body inside.

It seems physically impossible.

probably because it is.

physically impossible.

the chrysalis sits.
and sits.
and sits.

all alone.

forgotten.

subject to wind and rain
and all kinds of natural elements that would seek its destruction.

then one day, up you look.
and there,
is this absolutely beautiful butterfly.

perfect in every.way.

utterly impossible. . .

except that it's not.
______________________________

Reminds me of something. . .

compressed.
squashed by the realities that are unique to a fallen world.

feeling utterly alone.

then one day,
out of what seems like nowhere,
we'll emerge.

beautiful butterflies.

What an awesome God he is.

__________________________

Post edited to include this beautiful thought from the comments.

"once heard a story about a little girl who asked her mother,
'Do caterpillars know that they'll become butterflies,
or does God surprise them?'"
via Katie

I definitely think he surprises us,
but what do I know?


20 comments:

kennan said...

you probably don't remember me.... we went to high school together.

i just thought you should know i think you are amazing and beautiful.

Stephanie said...

fitting thoughts tonight since we collected ourselves a big caterpillar for FHE and have it as a family pet now- excited for the whole process... for you and him... although we wont force you to be our family pet.... ;)

Testing said...

We found one of those near our house and we love the reminder about how miraculous the little things really are!

Natalie. said...

kennan,

You look totally familiar. Checked out your blog. :) Your family is adorable! ADORABLE!!! I'm certain that if we were face to face I'd totally remember you from the HS days.

Thanks for being so nice. :)

xo!

N

Ashley said...

So true.

Jules said...

So beautiful... again. Thank you. Never thought of it quite like that. No wonder I LOVE butterflies. When we were recently in Hawaii, I saw soooo many of them everyday... hope you are too!!!

Hil said...

so beautiful. thank you for sharing and giving me some inspiration for the day. hope things are going well. you are always in my prayers.

Luanne said...

Really beautiful analogy Natalie. Thank you. Love to you, Richie and the boys. Thinking of you always.
Luanne

kara said...

thank you for your faith.

and like a catapiller to chrysalis
it happens F A S T.
chrysalis to butterfly takes so much longer, one tends to question that it will happen.

f a i t h.
for today and bright hope for tomorrow.

Brady and Rachel said...

Thank you. Perfect analogy. He is AWESOME! Hope you find lots of smiles in your day today. :) (just to start you off)

Anonymous said...

beautiful thoughts and I can't wait til that day!

Anonymous said...

praise the lord!!

Katie said...

Ok, I know that you are getting a lot of those "you don't know me, but.." lines, and here's another one :) I'm an art major here at BYUH and found your blog through a friend who had a link to yours. I love it, I've been "checking in" for probably over a year now. I just wanted to say how much I appreciate the spirit you are able to convey through your blog, and how it has uplifted me.. My husband and I have been praying for you and your family.

SO.. why I took so long to comment, I don't know, I'm pretty shy, but I couldn't resist when I read this post. I LOVE this analogy. It's something I've been thinking about a lot lately, too. I once heard a story about a little girl who asked her mother, "Do caterpillars know that they'll become butterflies, or does God surprise them?"

Wishing you all the best from not too far away :)

Kerri said...

Great thought, Natalie, and I'm glad you included that wonderful comment. Food for thought.

Renee Jacoba Robinson said...

wow. this reminds me of one of the most powerful sermons I ever heard. it was about the STRUGGLE of the butterfly and that it is a necessary part of the journey & transformation into something beautiful. That if we try to rush the process or pull the butterfly out before he's ready or before he goes through all the work & struggle, that we will only harm the butterfly and he will not have his strong wings to fly.
Take your time ;)
Hugs to your beautiful family of butterflies.

Michelle Jones said...

Love it. ALL of it.
. . . and your photographs are amazing. We've definitely decided we're going to schedule you in two years from now for a family shoot (it's just a good excuse to meet you in person, really).

Bridget said...

I love Katie's question and your thoughts. I think that some of us, like me, are very surprised with how tough the actual changing is and how we emerge. There's just no way to take a short cut into butterfly-hood. Unless you are talking about the lousy way our sons did it.

Natalie. said...

Bridget,

oh gol. I KNOW!

Leisa Tapia said...

ooo... your words gave me chills tonight...

thank you

-lt

Michelle Jones said...

had this thought later while I was in the shower. . .

I suppose that if God sends you to earth already as a butterfly, your life span will not be very long, naturally.