A little story from my imagination.

 

YBIC

Bruce aber

 

Conversation with a Caterpillar

“Earth’s crammed with heaven…”  Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Once upon a time there was a wise old man who lived in a small cabin deep in the woods.  Every day he chopped wood for his fireplace, hauled water from his well and did dozens of other things necessary to surviving alone in the forest.  Always he would say, “Thank you, Lord,” with every armload of firewood and every pail of water for he was truly thankful for all that the Lord provided.

So seldom did the old man have a need for anything he couldn’t gather in the forest that he rarely had to make the long walk to the little village that sat at the edge of the woods.  However, one summer morning he discovered that caterpillars had eaten the cabbage plants in his garden.  He knew he would have to go visit the village for seeds, so he slung on his knapsack, donned his big felt hat and set off.

He hadn’t travelled far when he spied a caterpillar in his path.  This was very fortunate indeed because at the moment he spotted the little creature, his boot was about to land on him.  With a hop, skip and tumble the old man managed to avert what would have been a squishy end for the caterpillar. 

Picking himself up and dusting off his bruised knees, the old man said, “Ho there little friend, I nearly did you in.  Sorry for that.”

“Aye, you gave me a fright,” replied the caterpillar. “Though I am in your debt for sparing my life even when doing so caused you some pain.”

“Think nothing of it,” said the old man who took a comfortable seat on the mossy root of an oak tree.

“Think nothing of it?  Indeed I shall!  When I tell this tale to other caterpillars, ballads will be composed in honor of what you have done.  That is if I should live so long.”

The old man gently picked up the caterpillar, placing him in his palm.  “Please explain your meaning.”

“Well, I’m a caterpillar, you see.”

“I didn’t suppose you were wearing green and white striped pajamas.  It’s plain to see you’re a fine specimen of a caterpillar.”

“Humph!  ‘Fine,’ you say.  Fine food for starlings!  Look for yourself.  There they are on the other side of the path hunting for me now.”

Sure enough the old man looked and saw six shiny black starlings poking and stabbing with their sharp little beaks in the grass and under the leaves.  Wherever their ebony eyes were directed there went a peck and stab.  All the while their wickedly sharp talons scraped, scratched and clawed the ground.

“Oh no!” cried the caterpillar.  For at that very moment one of the starlings found one of the caterpillar’s cousins and gobbled him down.  “See the fate waiting for me?  I’ll soon be breakfast too.  It is the fate of all caterpillars.”

“No, not all.  Many of your kind are destined for glory,” spoke the old man.

“How can you say such a thing?  You’ve never been faced with such an evil as those black hearted birds.”

“All men are hunted by far worse.  The demons who hunt after men are far, far more insatiable and clever.  When they scoop up a man they cause him to be thrown in a fire where he will burn forever.”

“Then there is no hope for either men or caterpillars, if what you say is true.”

“That’s the lie that the demons and starlings would have you believe.”  The old man reached in his knapsack and pulled out an old well worn bible.  “The One who made both men and caterpillars promised a glorious end for all who would trust in Him.  If we accept the Lord we shall both change.  We will cast off these earth bound bodies.  We will have heaven bound bodies that will fly to our new homes and we will be made kings.  We will both be changed into something new.  Completely different, but I will still be me… and you will still be you. We have His promise in this book.”

“I will change into something different?” asked the caterpillar a bit skeptically.  “You must be pulling all of my legs!”

The old man looked at the caterpillar’s sixteen legs and laughed out loud.  “Oh, not at all,” he replied when he had caught his breath.  “You will not be green and white striped, but be brilliantly colored.  You will no longer desire to eat lowly milk weeds, but will desire the nectar of flowers.  You will have wings that will shine like the sun and be able to fly thousands of miles to a new home.”

The little caterpillar thought very long and hard about what the old man said.  He whispered to himself, “Maybe what he is saying is true.  But, where is the proof?  Hmmm, maybe I can trust what he said because of what he did for me.”

While he was thinking these thoughts, the old man laid the caterpillar down on the grass away from the starlings.  “I must be going now,” the old man said.

“Where are you off to?” asked the caterpillar who was still afraid of being eaten.

“Into the village to buy some seeds to plant in my garden.  Some of your brothers and sisters have eaten all of my plants.”

The caterpillar became very ashamed.  “I didn’t know.”

“I forgive you,” the old man said.  Then the old man picked up a handful of stones and tossed them, scattering the starlings.  “I’ll be back this way in three days.  Think about what I told you.”  With that the old man started off down the path.

The caterpillar had so much to think about as he watched the old man disappear into the distance.  So much in fact that it made him very tired so he crawled up the stem of nearby plant, curled up and fell asleep.  For a two whole days and bit more he slept.  On the third day he determined to rouse himself and watch for the old man.  Then he blinked his eyes open and what should he see coming toward him.  Sure enough it was the old man!  The caterpillar stretched and something amazing happened!  He discovered that his whole body had changed into something glorious and different.  He now had beautiful wings that were as orange as the sun and he took off flying to meet his friend!  The lowly caterpillar had changed into a glorious monarch butterfly!

YBIC

Bruce Baber