The Caterpillar, The Cocoon and The Butterfly
“Regardless of where you start, how you finish is on you.” As hard of a truth this may be, Gary Vaynerchuk is right. We may not be able to decide the circumstances of the questions life asks us, but when it comes to the answer, we are in control of it. And this realization sounds not only rough but incredibly terrifying because it tasks us with something many of us are naturally afraid of: Responsibility. We are in control of the journey, even if we know how it is going to end. And we have the possibility to turn the voyage to the inevitable outcome which may already be decided into something unique and turn it into an outstanding experience full of love, joy and happiness, and later think back on it as a gorgeous piece on the carpet we´re weaving every day.
With every single weave, the journey progresses. With every bite the caterpillar chews of the leaf, it grows and evolves, it takes its tiny steps on the long journey of becoming a butterfly. And one day, it undergoes the transformation, it more or less dissolves into a cocoon and then emerges from it as a beautiful little miracle.
But up until this point, the caterpillar and the cocoon as well had to undergo a series of deadly trials and challenges in order to be where they are now. So, what are the trials a caterpillar faces, and what can you learn from it?
The Caterpillar
When the caterpillar comes out of its egg it is not any bigger than a pinhead. This is the fixed part of the journey. The caterpillar is born and it does only one thing. It eats as much as it possibly can until it is a hundred times bigger than its original size. It grows not only physically, but mentally. With every bite it takes, the neuronal structure is extended and in a strange way, the caterpillar mentally prepares for what is about to come. Now, here is the interesting fact about it: It is still debated whether or not caterpillars know that they will one day become a butterfly. Some scientists claim that they completely overwrite their brain structure, others that it is just their animal instinct to survive that has the growth of the neuronal structure as a side effect. Every biologist may now cut my head off if I misuse or misplace any scientific terms, I´m only a rhetorician and English student, so if I get anything terminologically wrong in my attempt to philosophy about this whole process, I apologize.
The caterpillar is something I find fascinating: In the process of its short life, it only does one thing, it eats, and it know in the bottom of its heart, or his conscience, that that is the only thing it has to do. You´ll rarely spot a caterpillar trying to build a tent, start a cult or write a book, because it knows that it is simply not made for that. It has a purpose, and though it might not know that the end goal is becoming a butterfly, it knows what behavioral pattern to stick to in order to secure its survival and growth. It knows what to do, and it does exactly that. And that make the caterpillar a very courageous little fellow. Because in its state it is extremely vulnerable. 65% of them get eaten by predators before they have even reached half of their desired size. It´s a time tainted by darkness and terrible odds and yet, the little canker knows that what he does is right, despite the danger he is exposing himself to. It eats, and it eats, and it keeps going, until it is time for the next step. The step of patience and tenacity, and more than that, the step of toughness.
The Cocoon
Nothing is sacred. And everything ends. So does the dreadful and seemingly ever-lasting climb of the caterpillar on its journey to become a butterfly. There is only one obstacle which resolutely stands in the way: The cocoon. The transformation of ridding yourself of the past and your insufficient former self to make room for a better, a more beautiful person, the butterfly. But the cocoon is the necessary step and it has to be taken. How does the caterpillar do that? To cut to the chase: It stars digesting its own body down to the only necessary parts and builds a thick shell in the process of doing so. And this process takes the caterpillar more energy than all the devouring of leaves took before combined.
We often describe the the road to success or greatness or fulfillment, or whatever you want to call it for that matter, as an endless grind. To become an overnight success you have to keep working on your craft for years and years until eventually, the spark turns into a fire. But I also believe that if you cannot light a fire with a tinder fungus, you should tend to the match, and if that does not work, use the flamethrower. The transformation is a crucial part of the success. Without the cocoon, there would be no butterfly. Why do we fear change? Because as it does from the caterpillar, it often demands more of us than we think we can handle. It expands our horizons and guides us down a path we are not sure we can or even should follow. It demands determination and an open mind, and most importantly, it demands patience and the trust in the process. There is one advantage we have to the caterpillar: We know consciously that after the night comes the sunrise. There are millions of success stories out there which report of the necessity of struggle to feel the beauty of the relief and the light. But they act despite their suffering, they transform, and they trust the process.
Jordan B. Peterson struggles with a heavy form of depression until this day, but that does not stop him from giving speeches and lectures and book talks and interviews all over the world. But despite their transformation and possible stagnation, they take action.
At the same time, what we have in common with the caterpillar, is that though we may not have a clear goal, we do know which direction to take. We know what is right and wrong. You think you don´t? Well, next time you´re trying to procrastinate on that task and that tiny voice in your head tells you: “Don´t do it.” That is your conscience, it is trying to tell you something, and often it is the voice you should listen to to prevent right from wrong. It may seem like a bad enemy, but in reality, it is your best friend.
So, if transformation is your best friend, what comes after it? Correct, the reward, the treasure at the end of the cave. What comes, is the butterfly.
The Butterfly
It is the feeling or relief after the exam. The pride after passing a test. The joy after leaving the dentist´s office without any holes in your teeth. It is the treasure in the cave. That is the butterfly. It is the moment after you fought a battle and you emerge from the battlefield as the hero who battled, and who won. The butterfly knows its capabilities and abilities from the moment it crawls out of its cocoon. What is fascinating about the butterfly that recent studies have shown that it actually remembers its previous life as a caterpillar. It knows where it comes from, and the humble beginnings it had before it became to creature it had to become. Granted, at this point my philosophy will go a bit off the rail and seem far fetched, but if you think about it, that is exactly the point. There is no glory without humility.
We are all on our journey towards becoming something, or someone. We know that and so often we tend to overlook the fact that we have not yet reached our destination, because we take pit stops and turns and corners. There is no straight way. And just like the caterpillar, we have to climb and work our way forward. Through danger and transformation to become who we are supposed to be.
And regardless of how we start, how we finish remains up to one and only one person: US.
