The Butterfly - A Lesson in Support

You may have heard this story about a butterfly.  I shared it many years ago, but am sharing it again as a reminder of how important it is to support someone while allowing the struggle.
 

The Butterfly

"A man found a cocoon of a butterfly.  One day a small opening appeared; he sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole.  Then it seemed to stop making any progress.  It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could and it could go no farther.

Then the man decided to help the butterfly, so he took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon.  The butterfly then emerged easily.  But it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings.

The man continued to watch the butterfly because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to be able to support the body, which would contract in time.

Neither happened!  In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings.  It never was able to fly.

What the man in his kindness and haste did not understand, was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the tiny opening, were nature's way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings, so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon.

Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our life.  If nature allowed us to go through our life without any obstacles, it would cripple us.  We would not be as strong as what we could have been.  And we could never fly..."

~ Author Unknown ~

This is a powerful lesson.  We, as humans, want to help others so much that sometimes we actually get in the way, or make things much worse.  By doing the work for someone else, thinking we are saving them from struggling, only holds that person back from learning what they need to learn to survive and thrive.  The truth is, we need to learn from our own experiences in order to understand ourselves and move forward.

Many a time, in an intuitive consultation, I have discovered that my clients' struggle with certain things in their lives because they have never had to tackle the problem for themselves.  They feel stuck and unable to cope.  I don't do the work for them, but empower them to be able to help and heal themselves.

Be the support someone needs, so they can be where they have to be, and become who they are meant to be, so they can fly.

Love and Blessings,

Caryl ♥