The Moth Has Something to Teach Us About Transformation.
This morning
when I woke, I was feeling into the day and how the year has gone, as we are in
the final month of 2020. I often start my day by creating an image to post to share in support of my clients and others who are on a path of transformation and value soul work.
I wanted to contrast what the feeling of 2020 was like for me with what I imagine 2021 will be like. I created the image above with the cocoon representing 2020 and the “butterfly”(so I thought!) representing 2021. I’ve been sharing with others all year long that this year was a time to cocoon and to do our inner work to transform our lives and our world.
This year and all that was going on inspired me to create an online experience I called,
“Shelter in Soul” in which we explore the phases of transformation associated with our symbol of transformation, the
butterfly!
I loved the way
the image I created turned out and posted it to my Instagram account.
Then I
showed my husband the image that I really felt good about with the two simple images side by side. “Does this capture
what 2020 was like and highlight the possibility of us emerging in 2021?” He
said, “wow, that’s cool, but that is a moth, not a butterfly!”
“Oh no,” I
thought acknowledging my mistake, and quickly deleted the post. But my sacred awareness kept returning me to
the image I had intuitively selected. As
images are the language of the soul, I trusted that this wasn’t a “mistake”
after all.
I started thinking
about what I knew about moths and what I associated with them. Right away I lit
up as I thought, “moths are drawn to the light”! Perhaps that was why my soul selected this
image?!
Elatedly I shared
this observation with my wise hubby who is a nature-based teacher and guide. Once again in his calm, loving manner he
first acknowledged my insight and then gently reminded me that moths are nocturnal
and not really drawn to the light as many of us have falsely attributed to
moths.
Yes! this was me doing what many of us do with
transformation, we have all kinds of hopeful, positive associations, and
expectations about how it will go and what it will look like, and what our ultimate outcome will be.
We can read a
book, shift some beliefs, recite some affirmations, focus only on love and
light, say a prayer, put some makeup on, and call it good.
My soul was calling
me to be more present with the deeper reality of transformation and my teacher was
going to be the moth.
I went to research
moths to discover that most moths are indeed nocturnal and utilize light
sources like the moon and the stars to navigate their flight in the dark.
One theory
suggests that moths seem to be “attracted” to unnatural light sources because
the lights throw off their internal navigation systems.
This from an article called, “Why Are Moths Drawn to Artificial Lights?” by Natalie
Wolchover opened even more awareness:
“Moths
didn't evolve around bright lights, after all; they evolved at a time when all
the light on Earth came solely from the distant sun, moon, and stars. In a
behavior called transverse orientation…(they) navigate by flying at a constant
angle relative to a distant light source, such as the moon.”
Just like
the moth, our true natures don’t evolve around bright lights either. Too much
artificial light throws off our own inner navigation as well. Too much screen time and time in our “artificial”
worlds can detour us from reclaiming our true natures and the wisdom that helps
us navigate through the dark and through the mystery of transformation.
Wow, my soul’s
wisdom had selected a more fitting image for our journey forward and for our
overall journey with transformation AND was inviting me to get even more real
with the actual process of transformation. It also was reminding me that there are
still more cycles of transformation ahead for us in 2021 (as there will be for the
rest of our lives!)
Transformation
isn’t a one-time process and it isn’t rainbows and butterflies. It is whatever
is needed to support us in the unfolding of potential. And sometimes what is
needed is to be woken up out of our Disney-like fantasies of what we thought our lives should look like and shift our perception to see that our "happily ever after" is being created in every moment.
I am a soul guide
and a soul tracker who is constantly working to deepen my ability to follow the
rhythms of transformation and unfolding in myself, in others, and in the
collective. I am able to sense the potential of transformation and the cycles connected
to the journey, not only due to my training and tools but mostly from
perception and intuition. Another way to say that is that I do so by trusting
my soul.
2020 was intense and full of uncertainty. Some of us “cocooned” with the intention to be transformed for the highest good and for the greatest possibility. My hope is that we do not go directly back to the artificial light sources that our previous selves were “attracted” to, that our old selves constructed. And that we have awakened more of our true natures and connected more deeply to our own soul wisdom more equipped to navigate whatever does show up in 2021 and beyond.
For me, the image I was mysteriously guided to create, a butterfly cocoon with an emerged moth, not a butterfly, symbolizes 2020 leading into 2021 and transformation in
general.
We expect
one thing and get another!
Transformation
requires us to let go of our expectations of how things should go or what it or
we will be like after we move through our individual and collective journeys.
It requires
us to stay connected to our soul’s wisdom and faith. To fully surrender all that is beyond our control and to trust more deeply in the mystery of how things are unfolding.
To navigate with the moon and the stars and all of creation, trusting that we will find our way.
All these years,
I thought I was striving to become a butterfly. It turns out I have always been
a moth.
Excellent! I definitely connect with that description. As I first started reading, my inner being felt resistance to the image of the butterfly. I had more of a vision of my earlier self as being an as yet unidentified darker shape and the transformational image was not quite so colorful or lovely but was softer, not luminous (I'll work on those). As I read on, and as the moth emerged with its characteristics, I felt a 'Yes' forming. Just as the moth uses natural light sources to navigate, I, in my process of transformation, experience my shifts when I stay connected to the natural guidance that exists within. I do loose my way when distracted by the artificial that surrounds and captivates me daily. But am brought back by excellent sources of wisdom, encouragement and guidance. Thank You ☺️
ReplyDeleteLove this. I was drawn to the image BECAUSE it was a moth and came here to read the story behind it. Thanks for all you shared about moths and the story behind the image.
ReplyDeleteLove this. I was drawn to the image BECAUSE it was a moth and came here to read the story behind it. Thanks for all you shared about moths and the story behind the image.
ReplyDeleteLove this. I was drawn to the image BECAUSE it was a moth and came here to read the story behind it. Thanks for all you shared about moths and the story behind the image.
ReplyDelete