Princess Sassy Pants & Co.™

I wonder if the caterpillar is aware that it is literally falling to pieces when it’s in the chrysalis. Does it become afraid? Does it think that things have really gone seriously wrong? Does it sit and plan how it will return to “normal,” inching along on the ground?

What is happening certainly can’t make any sense to it while it’s happening. Only as it finally emerges and takes flight could it possibly see that it was very mistaken. It could have simply rested in trust all along.

Things are often not as they appear; sometimes, what looks like falling apart is a preparation for a whole new experience. The old ways are sometimes simply out of alignment with the new ones forming, and they need to crumble to make room.

I also wonder what all of her caterpillar friends believe happened to her when she disappeared into the chrysalis. Do they think she’s dead and gone? Are they mourning the loss of their friend?

All the other caterpillars are gathered together, grieving, yet here she is, fluttering her new wings and dancing in the sky just above them.

Our view is so tiny and limited, yet we seem to place so much trust in it. The best place we can be is to begin to doubt the limitations that seem so natural to us and recognize that whatever we think we know, there is so much more to see and learn.

Although I have learned that there’s so much I don’t know, there’s one thing I’m sure of: We are all destined to fly.

So if you or someone you know seems to be falling apart, hang on; it is often when things seem to be the darkest that we are at the precipice of our greatest opportunities for real growth, and we find our wings!