The caterpillar lay on a pale green leaf
Bathing in sunshine and bliss.
Yawning, he lazily said to himself
“Life doesn’t get better than this.”
He was dashing in a caterpillar way –
Fuzzy and green with a black bow tie.
You could tell from his smile and his sparkling eyes
He was a happy-go-lucky guy.
The bush he called home was a paradise
Filled with luscious leaves and flowers.
He and his friends would meet there for lunch
Chatting and chomping for hours.
The caterpillars who live there were happy.
Life was simple and peaceful and sweet.
There wasn’t a single thing anyone had to do
But eat. And then rest. And then eat.
They were all more or less contented
Whiling away the afternoons,
Until one lunch when the discussion turned
To the topic of – cocoons.
“Cocoons are how we evolve!
Metamorphosis is fate!”
Said one excited caterpillar
Who started the whole debate.
“I think it’s a great adventure,”
Another added eagerly.
“Who would say ‘No’ to transformation?”
The guy in the bow tie answered, “Me.”
“Life is comfortable as it is,” he said,
“No! I don’t really want it to change!”
The stares and whispers made it clear
The others thought him rather strange.
He left lunch that sunny spring day
Feeling a little angry and sad and off-put.
Back to his favorite branch he marched
Foot after foot after foot.
“Go hibernate in cocoons,” he thought,
“Since you think it’s all so clever.
But I won’t squander my precious time
In metamorpho-whatever.”
The caterpillars started to disappear –
One by one by one –
Moving into the mysterious worlds
Of the silk cocoons they spun.
The bush became much lonelier,
But that caterpillar did his best
To make the most of every day,
Continuing to rest. Then eat. Then rest.
He made it his daily practice,
Among other odds and ends,
To check on each of the cocoons.
After all, they were still his friends.
One afternoon while making rounds,
Much to his surprise,
One of the cocoons split open –
And he couldn’t believe his eyes.
In that moment he started to understand
What magic transformation brings.
A beautiful, graceful creature emerged
With delicate, painted wings.
“Do you recognize me?” the creature asked.
The caterpillar’s breath had been taken away.
But he smiled and nodded and thought to himself
“I wish I had said “Yes” to change that day!”
That happy-go-lucky caterpillar
In his jaunty black bow tie,
Made a new decision right then and there
To give metamorphosis a try.
He spun his own silk cocoon
And during his transformation
There was time to think and had a thought –
More than a thought – a revelation.
Maybe letting go of “comfortable”
Is what enables all things to grow.
And maybe great adventures start with “Yes.”
They seldom start with “No.”
Fabletime 