First of
all, Happy Holidays to everyone. This time of year can be crazy, but try to
enjoy this time of year and find something to be grateful for.
As the end
of the year quickly approaches, I have been reflecting on this year and it has
been a fantastic year with so much growth. One of the biggest parts of growth this
year has been writing this blog. I started in May and I have really enjoyed
posting and getting comments. Many conversations have started here that I have
learned from and still enjoy immensely. I thought this would be a lot of work,
but it has been a pleasure. Thank you for all support and encouragement.
One
interesting thing for me was to look at all the things I have posted this year
and see how often posts are viewed. The one post that was visited much more
than the others was my post on Storytelling is Spiritual #1, where I wrote
about my favorite story to tell the students,“The House Builder.” If you haven’t read that, go back and check it out,
it is short yet powerful.
As I
reflected on that story, I thought about the second favorite story to tell the
students, along the same lines of the “The House Builder” called
“The Cocoon.” These stories hold special power and I save them for Friday
afternoons in our classroom. The students are always riveted. When teaching, I
look up and often find about half the class looking at me, but when I tell
these stories, every student is looking at me intently. There is power in these
stories on so many levels. So, here is the story:
“The
Cocoon”
"As a woman
was walking down the street, she noticed a little white circular object on the
sidewalk. She stopped to inspect it and found it was a cocoon. Holding it
gently, she could see the little butterfly vigorously trying to get out. This
excited her and she suddenly realized that she could help this butterfly gain
its freedom. So, she pulled out some nail clippers she had in her purse. Carefully
and meticulous, she made a very precise incision around the outside of the
chrysalis. Then, she gently laid it down and stood back, ready to see the
butterfly get out of the cocoon and happily fly away. Sure enough, the next
time the butterfly moved its wings, the cocoon opened and the woman saw a
spectacular yellow tiger swallowtail butterfly. She couldn’t help but smile as
she gazed at this creature she had just helped gain its freedom.
However,
when it tried to fly away, it couldn’t get off the ground. A couple times, it
flipped on its back and the woman tried to flip it back over, hoping it would
get air born soon. But, after about 10 minutes, it stopped moving and died. The
woman was crushed. She had been trying to help, but now felt she had somehow
killed the butterfly. Picking up the creature, she went home quickly and called
her friend who was a biologist. Relating the story, she asked, “Did I kill it?”
He replied that yes, she had killed it inadvertently by letting it out of its
cocoon too soon. He went on to say that butterflies need to strengthen their
wings fully in the effort to break out of the cocoon. Also, in the process of
working their way out of the cocoon, they are getting the needed blood supply
to their wings to enable them to fly and survive. This made her feel a little
better as she understood her part in the process."
I ask the
students what this story means. One student said that it means you should not
mess with nature or try to speed up the natural flow of life. I like that.
Others say that we grow strong from the struggles in life. I like that even
more. I go on to tell the students that as a teacher, I am not helping them by
letting them out of their cocoons too soon. For example, if they are struggling
with a new concept in math and ask for an answer to a problem, it would be easy
for me to give it to them. Instead, I need to let them struggle and help their
wings get stronger. In our classroom, we even use those words, “I can’t do that because that would be like letting you out of your cocoon
too early.”
Personally,
I know sometimes I still want someone to come let me out of my cocoon when I am fighting
to break free of some problem in life. But, I know that many times my “wings” need to get
stronger. When I reflect on the struggle, I often ask, "'What should I be learning
here?" Maybe the lesson is to be more patient or persistent. Sometimes, I need to remember
that life doesn't always have to get easier. Often, I just need to keep growing stronger. If
I focus on the lesson I am learning in life, I don’t need to have someone come and set me free, I am already free.
Humorous
Christmas Quote:
“There are four ages of man:
(1) When you believe in Santa Claus.
(2) When you don't believe in Santa
Claus.
(3) When you are Santa Claus.
(4) When you look like Santa Claus.”
- Unknown
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