BUTTERFLIES by Ruth Calder Murphy

My youngest child, Esther Grace (or Tessie-G as she’s known) - aged five - asked for a poem about butterflies...

The poem emerged, somewhat butterfly-like itself, from its cocoon in my mind, and surprised me. It’s a poem about butterflies, but it’s also a poem about me - and you, and Tessie - and everyone who ever feels afraid or weak or insignificant.

It’s a poem about stretching and growing and transforming... and discovering wings.

Butterflies

by Ruth Calder Murphy

Butterflies, my Tessie-G,

are the bravest

- and the brightest - things

you’ll ever see with wings.

(Except for the Phoenix,  

I suppose,

but it’s very rare indeed

to see one of those…)

Butterflies, you see,

begin tiny-small

and so grubby and low

you’d hardly notice them at all…

but,

steady and slow,

they persevere and grow

and grow

and GROW…

Then,

into the silent, swaddling dark they go,

all alone,

not knowing quite where - or what - they are,

any more,

for the longest night you can imagine -

longer and darker

than when we shut your bedroom door

and you have to wait till morning…

Butterflies, my Tessie-G,

are the bravest and the brightest things -

waiting to discover their new wings

in the chrysalis night…

And then, they fight,

before they even know what wonderful happenings

went on in the cocoon cave:

They fight -

for life and freedom and the light of day…

And only then they break away:

the most brilliant,

brightest things

you’ll ever see,

with wings.

Photograph by Catherine Ghosh

Ruth Calder Murphy is a writer, artist, music teacher, wife and mother living in London, UK. Her life is wonderfully full of creativity and low-level chaos. She is the author of two published novels, The Scream and The Everlasting Monday, several books of poetry and one or two as-yet unpublished novels. More of Ruth' Spiritual poetry can be found in her book, Spirit Song and the soon-to-be-released sequel, "River Song". She is passionate about celebrating the uniqueness of people, questioning the unquestionable and discovering new perspectives on old wonders. She is learning to ride the waves that come along—peaks and troughs—and is waking up to just how wonderful life really is. You can visit Ruth and view more of her art on her website, or on her writer's page on Facebook. All her books are available on Amazon, here.

~If you are interested in seeing your poetry appear in this blog, or submitting a poem by a woman that has inspired you, please click here for submission guidelines. I greatly look forward to hearing from you!~