An Allegory
One day a little girl was playing in a field when she saw a
beautiful butterfly, the most beautiful butterfly that she had ever
seen. Each time the little girl returned to the field, the butterfly
was there. The little girl watched and watched the beautiful butterfly
flutter about from flower to flower. Soon she began to wish that it to
land on the palm of her outstretched hand. Thus, she began to hold out
her hand, hoping— oh how she hoped, dreaming about that day when it
would actually settle on her palm. And everyday, as the little girl
held out her hand the butterfly came closer and closer, until one day
it landed on the palm of her hand.
Oh, joy! What a thrill the
little girl felt that day; an excitement that in all of her years she
had never known. Each day the little girl continued to come to the
field, and each day the beautiful butterfly landed on her palm. Each
day the little girl's excitement grew, until one day she wished that
she could touch the beautiful butterfly as it sat on her palm.
One
day, desiring only to feel the beautiful butterfly's softness and to
touch its silken wings – to let the beautiful butterfly know how much
it was loved – the little girl caught the butterfly in her hand.
And when she opened his hand…
The beautiful butterfly had been crushed.
©Frank A. Mills, 2009