My Turn to Die

It Was My Turn to Die

Once a moving-about butterfly, a small Cabbage White, I’m now upside down in the brook, stuck fast to a rock while the rushing water moves me this way and that. Around me, life: worms, snakes, snails, bugs, birds and fellow Lepidoptera. Yellow flowers, pinkish-purple flowers, green plants, pine trees, breezes and this human hunkered down on a boulder peering at me with rapt attention. What’s the big deal? Why is she staring? My spirit released itself with no fanfare. Don’t worry dear, I had my days. I had my wonderful life. I was an oval shaped egg, I hatched and ate my way to a green caterpillar self. I shed my skin four times before I found that particularly cozy spot to spin my silk and cover myself and take my special transformative nap. I had my mystery time where amazing things happened to change me completely. I fought my way out of my chrysalis when the time was right. I dried my soft and wrinkled wings (wings!) in the warm spring sun. And I flew, oh glory, I flew. Can you imagine what that was like? I had two splendid weeks to fly, perch on flowers, sip nectar. Fly! I mated (ah, nice) flew, sipped more nectar, flew, sipped nectar, laid eggs, flew, sipped nectar and oh yes, once again, I flew. And then it was finished. I dropped in the brook. My time was complete and my tiny energy departed its dwelling space to rejoin the One.

So, female human who seems to be caring so much that I’m dead and my body is stuck on this rock. Stop mourning. I had my wonderful life. For god’s sake I flew! No regrets. All is well, nothing wrong. It was merely and simply my turn to die. Get up, get moving, sip some nectar and fly. You’ll be in the brook soon enough.