When I was very young I found some caterpillars on a milkweed plant.  Having heard about how caterpillars turned into butterflies, I put one of the them into a jar with some milkweed leaves just to see what would happen.

After a short time, the caterpillar attached itself to the lid of the jar and formed a beautiful green chrysalis, ornamented with gold flecks.  I was so excited at this development that I wanted to share the experience. I took the jar into my second grade class, and there it sat on the windowsill for what seemed like an eternity, but was actually about two weeks.  Finally, one morning, we arrived at school to find that from the chrysalis had emerged a regal Monarch butterfly.  It was an experience I would never forget.

This event had a tremendous impact on my life.  When I got older, I began to see myself and others as much like that caterpillar.  We start our lives as relatively helpless, dependent creatures.  Over time, as a means of defense and protection, we construct our chrysalis, which is the person that we project to the outside world.  Inside the chrysalis, changes are taking place, we are absorbing life’s experiences, and we are becoming.  But what are we becoming?

Here is where the analogy breaks down a little bit, because the real caterpillar has no choice as to what it will become. Taking its natural course, it will emerge as a butterfly.  People, on the other hand, have many choices, making the outcome much less certain.

Will we emerge as glorious Monarchs, beautiful, free, and independent; or will we become something else; maybe, something less?  It is my belief that what emerges is determined primarily by the choices and decisions we make inside our chrysalis.

This brings me to the purpose of this blog; to explore our choices and their potential impact on what we are becoming.  Since I am a fellow caterpillar, I do not pretend to have, of my own, any superior knowledge or wisdom to aid in becoming a butterfly, so I rely on commonly accepted wisdom, primarily Jewish and Christian scriptures, for guidance; and of course your comments and feedback.

This blog is written from a Christian perspective; but since its ultimate goal is to arrive at the truth, which is universal, it is my hope that people of all faiths may benefit from reading it and participating in the comments.  Please consider taking this journey of becoming with me, and perhaps we, by the grace of G-d, and like my childhood friend,  will emerge  from our chrysalis as butterflies; and reign together as glorious Monarchs, forever.