A man found a cocoon of a butterfly, and he brought it home.One day, a small opening appeared in the cocoon. The man sat and watched the cocoon for several hours as the butterfly struggled to force its body through that little hole.Then it seemed to stop making progress. It appeared as if the butterfly had gotten as far as it could, and it could go no farther. The man decided to help the butterfly in its struggle. He took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon...and the butterfly emerged easily.As the butterfly emerged, the man was surprised. It had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings. He continued to watch the butterfly expecting that, at any moment, the wings would dry out, enlarge, and expand to support the swollen body. He knew that in time the body would contract, and the butterfly would be able to fly...but neither happened!In fact, the butterfly spend the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings.What the man, in his kindness and haste, did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle were required for the butterfly to be able to fly.The butterfly must push its way through the tiny opening to force the fluid from its body and wings. Only by struggling through the opening can the butterfly's wings be ready for flight once it emerges from the cocoon.Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our life. If our Higher Power allowed us to go through 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!Spread your wings and prepare to fly,For you have become a butterfly...Fly abandonedly into the sun!************************************************************I shared this story one morning at a meeting and then a friend invited me to breakfast after that. When we sat at this outdoor setting, LITERALLY...a butterfly landed right on my forehead! I will never forget that and the look on my friends face sitting across the table from me as it was so magical as she just heard that story I shared.I believe there are many versions and perspectives to this story. Sometimes we can only love our loved ones from a distance and while it hurts at times to watch them struggle, sometimes those pains are what is necessary. We can just love them up from the outside. Like watching a baby take its first steps.And it also requires us to get through the hard and tough times (cacoon) as that inner strength we discover as a result, allows us to move on to the next exciting phase in our life. It takes all the personal strength to open that NEW door and walk thru. In this time of transformation, it takes a lot of "letting go" of the old and all that doesn't serve us anymore.May your journey continue to unfold with such mighty grace and that all your inner strength carries you on to new adventures and exciting experiences! My old friend Gary (RIP Gary!) used to say: "look...there ya go, 10 minutes has gone...30 minutes ago has gone, a day ago has gone, a week ago is gone... See how much time flies. It's a new time all the time and we're missing many opportunities."May you soar with new wings on your ever changing path and that you open to recieve all the blessings that is available right in front of you!Happy Spring!Blessings,Joey


I am emerging through yet another cacoon on my path & letting go all that is no longer serving me. I am ready to spread my new wings and soar onto new adventures! How perfect for SPRING!
P.S.If you're in Vegas, check out the current installation at the Bellagio Casino Arboretum as there is a whole Spring theme on butterflies including a green house filled with live butterflies!
Thoughts from my friend Joey
CN