Metamorphosis
Oh so slowly the cocoon breaks
Such a miracle, such a gift!
Who would expect that the ugly
Little caterpillar would ever fly?
Who would know that the crawling
Would becoming soaring on high?
Who would suspect that plain body
Would become glorious colors?
Through the dormant months and years
The creature waited, expectant
Knowing that the darkness wouldn’t last
Someday the light would break through.
Then, it came!
A sliver, a precious piece of sunshine
Broke through the shell
Wet, but jubilant, a new being appears.
A crawling thing no more, but a butterfly
A creature of the sky and wind emerges
No more drudgery of the ground,
But a glorious freedom of the air.
Colors, for plainness
A sky for the ground
Though the cocoon was dark and dreary
In the end, it produced a butterfly.
God in his wisdom gave this example
That we might remember His plan.
He loves those He chastens,
The darkness of the soul, the cocoon.
When the time is right, we emerge
We fly for His glory.
Changed, renewed, transfigured.
Be as the butterfly.
4 years ago
4 comments:
Beautiful, my love, Beautiful
Nicely done, dear. You have a knack for words that is well reflected in your writings.
Btw, I noticed you said (on a comment on Jess's blog) that you're having a conflict of interest with Dr. Walker b/c he's interested in "reality" while your heart lies in "escaping reality." I feel the need to address this, as I have been there and am now there (since I'm in his class again).
Tolkien helped me immensely with this (as well as Dr. Walker). In his essay titled "Faerie," Tolkien stressed that the point of fantasy (and I would say fiction in general) is not to "escape" reality, but to "see" reality clearer than we originally saw it. We go into wonderlands to see things as they really are and not as they are given us.
That is why the medium of story is powerful for Christians. We are in constant awareness of and contact with how things "really are," and it is our job to testify of those things to the world. ANY story (whether it is realistic or fantastic) can accomplish this.
Dr. Walker may stress realism (which can be necessary to help ground us when we need to be grounded), but he stresses even more the value of a good story. "Don't let anything get in the way of a good story," he has said before, and that will always be his final teaching.
In addition, he would also say (and has said) that we each have not only our own voice but also our own story to tell, and it will be different from others: some will be realistic, some fantastic, others in between. The point is that you learn how to tell your story, and tell it well.
Your tale is not frivolous or trivial. God gave it to you, and it is yours to tell. If anything, that is what you should learn (and what Dr. Walker would want you to learn) from the creative writing class.
Bravo, Jon! Well said!
By the way, Jennifer (tee hee), how exactly do I join this Pseudo-Rivendell outfit of yours? I would be happy to sign up.
Post a Comment