Humanity and the Butterfly: Time to Spread Your Wings!
We’re living in times of unprecedented transformation, challenge, and opportunity. Despite our modern progress and technological advances in the last few decades, global upset, environmental crisis, economic strife, poverty, and war have taken their toll. Our old approaches, based on separation, ignorance, greed, and materialism, have reached a dangerous peak. As a world, we’re being called to a whole new level of consciousness.
So, how can we pave the way to a positive future? Should we scurry to our beds, throw the covers over our heads, and just hope it all goes away, hoping someone else will figure it out for us? Or, do we rise to the occasion and awaken to our personal and collective responsibilities in creating a new planetary experience based on unity, love, and respect?
On December 21, 2012, we move into a new world cycle. While some people frantically claim that we’re heading for doomsday with 2012, we’re NOT. The 2012 date marks the completion of this World Age Cycle, but it’s not an end point or something to fear. Our current challenges aren’t signaling the end at all. Rather, they’re beckoning us to wake up and take full responsibility, both as individuals and a collective, in the shaping of our next world age.
Let’s step back for a moment and consider the experience of one little caterpillar:
Once there was a little caterpillar who dreamed of becoming a beautiful butterfly. He woke up confused. “What? Me? Fly? Wow… cool,” he thought. “But come to think about it, I’m afraid of heights! No way, caterpillars don’t fly.” So he went about his life exactly the way it had been, chewing on leaves like the others because… well, that’s what caterpillars like him were supposed to do. He began to hear voices urging him to fly but that made him move further to the center of the leaf, further resisting the voices that began to bother him. “What’s happening to me? Is anyone else feeling this way?” Along with the scary yet compelling voices in his head, he started to get sick like he had a bad flu and his skin began to fall off.
So the little caterpillar, getting more and more ill, continued going through the treacherous process of shedding his skin. His immune system was being attacked by the source of the voices—imaginal cells that kept multiplying inside him. Each time an imaginal cell created another one, he heard, “I can fly!” He was seriously having the nightmare experience of his life. What was he becoming? What about his caterpillar life? Why wasn’t it working for him anymore??
And so our little friend kept getting sick and tired from all the shedding and feeling miserable. One day he was finally able to crawl to another plant, but then he discovered he had to hang upside down. Talk about scary! He worked through all his fear and, compelled by something deep inside him, he found the last caterpillar strength within him. After several attempts he was finally able to attach himself to the leaf. With hard work, he formed a hard casing around his body. Then he remains stuck inside this little, claustrophobic cocoon for what seems like eternity. He’s tired, sick, and having crazy hallucinations about flying free and happy in the air. Nothing makes sense anymore, and he just wants to give up. He falls asleep for a while exhausted, not sure who he is anymore.
In fact, while he’s inside the cocoon—painful and scary as it was—the parts of him that died brought new parts to life! How could this be?
He wakes up in the dark and finds he has a different kind of strength now. He pushes and pushes and cracks his cocoon open and… the once slimy caterpillar finally emerges as a beautiful butterfly!
***
Of course, I added some humor to illustrate this natural process, but here’s my point: As a world, we’re now in a similar process of metamorphosis. Like a caterpillar has to transform to become one of the most beautiful insects on earth, we must go through our own metamorphosis to reach a whole new and more beautiful level of existence. Right now, we’re collectively in that sick and tired phase. Rather than give up and focus on catastrophe, as a collective we need to change our perceptions and focus instead on community and respect but also to honor the process of death and change.
Biologist Dr.Bruce Lipton talked about this power of collective thinking in his amazing book, Spontaneous Evolution. When Bruce was working with cells, he noticed that when he changed their environment, it wasn’t the gene that controlled the fate of the cells. It was the environment. And when we change the environment of our thoughts, feelings, and beliefs to one that is supportive, loving, and healthy, we become well. Bruce illustrates how the same is true for humanity—we cannot evolve if all the cells (us) are focused on competition and separation. Bruce calls us the imaginal cells in human consciousness evolution. Imaginal cells are responsible for taking a caterpillar to a butterfly. And, that’s us!
On a more individual level, many of us are also going through a personal metamorphosis. If you’re longing for something to change in your life, think of the experience of the caterpillar. How can you use your imagination to reframe your experience?
Ultimately, through new thinking, trust, and imagination, we can create a whole new experience for ourselves and our world. Remember, a creepy, crawling caterpillar becomes a one of the most beautiful flying creatures in our world through transformation.
Exercise:
What’s your vision for the world? Write out your dream for the world and for yourself. Then share it!
I’ll start:
My vision for the world is that our governments detach from their enmeshment with big business and allow a new source of renewable energy to replace our dependence on oil. My vision is that we all treat the earth as our First Mother, ensuring respect for all of life. I see humane treatment of animals, especially all that are raised for our nourishment. My vision is that we share the wealth of the world to ensure that no one goes hungry. I see clean oceans, clean drinking water for every person, and untouched protected forests. I envision peace and inspired right livelihood for all, bringing abundance to all. As global citizens, I see cooperation and true democracy by the people for the people, ensuring fairness, justice, and the pursuit of happiness. In my own life, I see myself doing my part to relieve the suffering of others and to always be inspired and creative, showing others how to find magic and meaning in the story of their lives. I envision the flow and being part of the solution not the problem!
What’s yours? I hope you’ll write in and share it with me and others who read this blog!
In service and love,
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My vision is to see religions being replaced by the teachings of living masters Gurus such as Eckhart Tolle, Mooji, Ian Wolstenholme, Barbara Marx Hubbard, Ervin Laszlo etc so there are more Truthful teachings available to the masses alongside meditation, tai chi Yoga etc classes becoming more available to everyone to create a more rounded, creative individual…..I would love to see more people relate to the food on their plate and reduce meat eating in favour of a more compassionate form of eating with chefs being more creative and responsible for the food we are conditioned to eat and allowing their creative talents to become focused on dishes from fruits, pulses and vegetables which help the planet and nourish the people of it so we can reduce the grain and huge water waste that is fed to animals and use that for feeding people instead so reducing poverty at the same time.
My vision for humanity is one of connection and one of empowerment. We are in the midst of a tremendous shift in consciousness, and many are waking up to the unlimited possibilities for ourselves and our planet. Information is coming in from the higher realms at an amazing frequency to help us with this transformation. I see people of all races and ages holding hands across the oceans, supporting and helping each other to claim our personal power to create change and to have the courage to face the challenges ahead. We can do this; we must do this; we will do this.
Dear Colette~
This article really resonated with me.
In July 1980 I went on a Yoga and Meditation holiday. During the week there I had a dream whereby I was a chrysalis encased in darkness. There wasa light glowing and shining in the distance, which travelled nearer and nearer. Slowly I emerged from my case as a butterfly with wings slowly unfurling. The light became brighter changing into cerulean blue. My wings began to move and I flew up into the sky. The butterfly wings changed into bone and feather and I was a bluebird soaring across sapphire heavens. The bird became a star-baby looking down on the gently spinning world. The images formed an eternal circle of life, rebirth and transformation. I went on to write the poem Unity included below and to paint the vivid images of chrysalis, butterfly, bluebird and star-baby, which is on my website @ http://www.viviensteels.webs.com/morepoetry.htm.
Unity
by Vivien Steels
The body curled into a chrysalis,
slept for the darkness
soft within a womb of life,
suspended and silent.
The light fell onto the brittle case.
Energy flowed through the hidden form.
The head lifted,
the wings rose
drawn to the sky.
Patterns dusted with colour
filled each floating wing.
Life lifted and fell
with each stroke.
The wings strengthened.
Vein became bone,
dust became feather,
butterfly became bird.
The bird shimmered and sang,
sifting the air for food.
Blue pointed tail;
blue stretched wing,
diving and rising
between earth and sky.
The wings lengthened.
Bone became strong.
Feather became skin.
Bird became child.
The child sat, arms outstretched,
seeing the spinning world
marbled below her.
Patterns coated with colour
filled each eye.
She was one -
with butterfly, bird
and whole world.
Thank you Colette for those beautiful words! My vision for all people is for everyone to awaken thier souls to increase thier loving vibrations and unconditional forgiveness. Peace begins in the human heart. Every soul has within itself the power to reconize thier call. One person at a time. God Bless, Brenda
Thank you for such a beautiful metaphor:) I have been in that cocoon over and over again and each time I come out I am grateful for the experience.
I see a world where communities work together to help one another. Where there are no borders between countries (and other worlds…hahaha:)). A world where people understand the cycles of Mother Earth and treat Her with love. There is love and respect for all of nature’s creations and we live in unison and balance understanding we are all one with all. A world where we let our light shine brightly knowing this light is the key to our happiness and joy. We know love is the answer to anything and live in the moment blissfully with faith and trust. Heaven on Earth at last:)
Spot on. If I could get rid of one thing; it would be greed. And treat all that suffer from greed as mentaly ill. Our first order of business is to get off of fossil fuels. I believe we are developing the technology to control the planet’s tempature by controlling the eliments in the atmosphere. It’s decades away from being implimented though and should the wrong people take control again we could see a reversal. We need to be dilligent. Keep the dream alive. Another is population control, how many beings will fit here? How many can we feed?
As a student of socio-cultural anthropology, I struggle between the realities of the world and its great potential. It is my hope that we end competition. Competition does not bring out the best in us. Cooperation does. It is my hope that we create a world based on cooperation, love, and compassion. I envision a new economic system with these ideals at its heart. I envision a world where small scale indigenous peoples are allowed to follow the life they choose not one forced upon them. I envision a world where we learn and listen to each other not strive to force and conquer each other. I envision a world where we see the value in each other. I envision a world where we realize noone is above or below another, we all have equal worth.
Let’s reach for the highest in human potential not the lowest. Let’s make a world based on love, respect, and compassion and end this madness.
lots of love.
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