Caterpillar Dreams

With patience and understanding a crisis can turn your caterpillar into a beautiful butterfly. Marty Varnadoe Dow, How To Soar Above The Crisis

Serendipity. Happenstance. Fate. Whatever you call it, reading that quote reminded me of a story I wrote for my daughters when they were little.


Once upon a time there was a lonely, little caterpillar who cried and cried because he hated being a caterpillar. One day a leaf fairy took pity upon him and gave him three wishes. At first the caterpillar asked to be a beautiful red rose. But the rose’s stem was too prickly and nobody could touch him. So, he asked to become a lovely, graceful iris. But the iris was too blue and he was tired of being blue, he'd spent his life being unhappy. Finally he asked to be a daisy, a beautiful, many armed daisy. Alas, the daisy was still rooted to the ground and could not reach out and touch someone unless they came to her.

The caterpillar was devastated. He’d used up all his wishes and now he was stuck in the stupid body of a daisy with all those useless arms. He started to wail and pull his petals out. Alarmed, the leaf fairy took pity on him and granted him one final wish.

"I want to be a butterfly," he cried. "A beautiful butterfly with gossamer wings free to flit from flower to flower."

"Okay," promised the fairy. "But this is your last wish. I've used up my magic for today."

And, Poof! The caterpillar opened his eyes expecting to see his beautiful wings spread out around him. Alas, all he saw was the fuzzy, furry little body of the caterpillar he used to be.

"But I wanted to be a butterfly!" He wailed.

"You are a butterfly," the leaf fairy whispered softly. "Inside you is a beautiful pair of wings yearning to be free. But first, you must learn to spin your own dreams."

In that story I wrote to entertain my daughters and their friends long ago, the caterpillar eventually learned to stay still long enough to hear his wings calling. And once he heard them calling, he began to weave a tender cocoon around his body so that he could fall asleep to dream of awakening as a beautiful, iridescent butterfly. And he did.

Within us there are dreams to spin, stories to tell, adventures to unfold. Estee Lauder of cosmetic fame said, "I didn't get where I am by thinking about it or dreaming about it. I got here by doing something about it."

Having dreams is important. Listening to our dreams, heeding their call, letting go of the past, stepping into the moment and taking action is the only thing that will make our dreams comes true.

Like the caterpillar who had to learn to spin his own dreams, we are all capable of taking the steps that put reality into the picture of our dreaming.

It's up to me. It's up to you to just get out there and... Do It!

The question is: Are you crying about the fact you're not who you want to be? Are you spending your time upset by what isn't right in your life and missing all that is? Are you willing to close your eyes and leap? To do one thing today that will bring you closer to your dream come true?