This morning, as I walked out to the flower garden, I was greeted by a pitiful display of withering flowers. With feelings of dismay, I thought of how sad it was that these beautiful flowers which had brought me such joy all summer long, were now worn and spent. Just a short time ago, they were showing off their beauty in a grand display of color, but now, with heads bowed in mournful defeat, they had yielded themselves up to the inevitable change of the season. 

On this warm and hazy morning, I could relate to these pitiful flowers. With smoke-filled air from the fires that are still raging all around us, and the morning news delivering anything but an uplifting report, I, too, was feeling worn and spent, ready to yield myself up to an unpredictable, and perhaps an ill-fated future, unable or unwilling to envision a more promising time, or an upcoming spring.

As if to save me from falling into a dark place of melancholy, a tiny butterfly came fluttering by, landing ever so lightly on one of the few remaining blossoms. I became mesmerized as I watched the lively dance of this tender creature, noting how it flittered about from flower to flower, unaware that it was being watched.  

With a determination to fulfill the measure of its creation, this small butterfly waltzed joyfully about, simply doing what butterflies do, regardless that the world around it seemed less than ideal. It didn’t seem to care that the flowers were withering, or the sun was hiding behind a veil of smoke, or that the world seemed bleak and hopeless. By simply being what it was, and doing what it did, it filled my drab and fading garden with beauty and delight.

This butterfly will never know of the impact it had on me today, or of the lesson it taught. Watching this fragile creature made me realize that perhaps I too can go about living life joyfully in a world that seems less than ideal. With an equal determination to do what I’ve been sent here to do, knowing that I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me (Philippians 4:13 ), I will try to live like this butterfly, and to find joy in simply being!