Evidence of Hidden Change

It’s all so very much like that Monarch caterpillar that makes a chrysalis for herself and surrounds her old body with the protective shell that will house it for a period of time. She was designed to know just when it was time to do so. For a neighboring caterpillar on a different part of the milkweed plant, it’s not her time. But each caterpillar follows the plan laid out for her…if you have ever seen this process…it’s not pretty. The caterpillar twists and strains and maximizes her torque until she is done and it is complete. It’s exhausting to watch. 

Then comes a period of stillness… or is it? What is happening inside that chrysalis? When all that we can see is a green, ribbed, plastic-looking shell with a ring of gold flecks adorning the top… what is taking place on the inside? And how long will it last? In my days of teaching preschool, the little ones and I observed that different caterpillars require different numbers of days for the process to be complete. Again, each caterpillar follows the plan laid out for her.

And on the appointed day; usually when no one is looking, she cracks through the home she has outgrown as the chrysalis can no longer contain her new wings. It takes all the strength she has to resist the confines of the chrysalis and burst forth. And there the empty shell hangs. It no longer serves her. She finds a new branch; this time one with flowers to renew her strength to prepare for the next stage of her life. And as her tiny legs grasp that new branch, she waits. She may have to face the sun’s heat and get tossed about by unexpected rain 

storms. 

But if she endures, the moment will come when her brand new wings are strong enough to launch her into the breeze, and she takes flight. As she flutters to new heights, she finds herself soaring. She has a completely different perspective from way up there. She can see clearly and all of the sudden, she 

understands what she was created to do! Her old life is but a foggy memory as she sets her eyes on the limitless sky above. Menopause can be the beginning of the BEST years in life as new freedoms open the door for us to become stronger and wiser as we live out our calling…!