30 Days of Encouragement – Day 9 – Becoming

Welcome to Becoming. This is Day 9 in the 30 Days of Encouragement series. I am glad you are here.

Becoming sounds enlightening – like a sunny morning breeze or waves on the ocean. Almost otherworldly. Sadly, Becoming is not all rainbows and butterflies. It is a bit like the latter of those two, but more on that in a minute.

Enlightenment

Becoming involves a certain amount of enlightening about oneself. The word evokes images of peacefulness for me. A deep-seated steadiness despite the turmoil occurring at any given moment. While that can be the end result, the process required to obtain the result is rarely as pleasant as the image.  

I imagine cheerful people skipping down a road in excitement upon the instruction of a good power-at-be. With the sun shining in their faces and the wind at their backs! However, fear, cowardice, and stupidity accompany each of us along the way, and we each face trials we would have much rather done without.

Rainbows and Butterflies

Butterflies are an enduring picture of ease and enjoyment. I know I have heard the phrase, “life isn’t all rainbows and butterflies!” Implying that butterflies are some sort of pie-in-the-sky thinking or naivety. I am not happy to report that life IS all butterflies.  

Forgive me for being this person, but I am about to Merriam-Webster you. One of the definitions for metamorphosis is a marked change in appearance, character, condition, or function. For a caterpillar to become a butterfly, metamorphosis must occur. A caterpillar is compelled to do this through its biology, and it is utterly…disturbing. 

The Brutal Butterfly

Firstly, the caterpillar wraps itself in a chrysalis-WHICH IS ITS OWN BODY-after having shed its skin like a snake. Secondly, once in the chrysalis, enzymes are released that “rip apart and dissolve cells in its muscles, digestive system, and other organs.” (the video said this, not me). Fear not! The enzymes do not “liquefy” everything. Breathing tubes are left in place and special cells, known as imaginal discs, begin to wake up. The special cells were intentionally kept dormant when in the caterpillar stage.  

The imaginal discs hold the genetic recipe to form a different adult body part. In the final stages, organs and wings form, and a butterfly emerges. From start to finish, the Becoming takes two weeks. (On an unrelated note (or maybe not), two weeks is a time frame that keeps popping up around me. Synchronicity much?) 

The Art of Becoming

The entire process the caterpillar undergoes begins from the inside out. It emerges as a beautiful, peaceful creature. Getting there was nothing short of horrific, though.  

When we are in the middle of our own Becoming, the same thing occurs. It begins from the inside and works its way out. For me, it started with questions such as, who is it I want to be? How does that person think or act differently from how I am now? What does it take to become that person or accomplish her dreams/goals? 

It is not always pleasant or pretty.  We often feel like we are dissolving into mush based on the situations or revelations this all brings to the surface. A shedding of beliefs, actions, and thoughts will occur to get there. Its beauty is the knowledge of a butterfly being on the other side of all of this Becoming. Knowing that keeps one moving forward. 

Until Next Time,

Rah