I’ve always loved butterflies and it’s always struck me how beautiful their phases of life are. It’s easy to see parallels between the life phases of butterflies and the life phases of humans. However, most of the time as humans we don’t take the time to slow down and notice what is passing us by. In the quarantine times of COVID-19, I think it’s the first time in a very long time that our generation has been forced to slow down and see what is right in front of us. This time has allowed me to visualize my own personal metamorphosis. I have seen myself in this time becoming not as afraid of being alone, as I have been mostly forced to quarantine alone. I have also visualized myself fulfilling the prophecy, as I like to call it, behind my name. I have also seen myself making time for meditation, home-cooked food, excellent personal care/hygiene, and even baths. That’s crazy right. Before the quarantine, I didn’t even have time or motivation to do something as simple as taking a bath. This quarantine also brings back some depressive feelings I didn’t deal with before but that is good right? We should deal with things, not store them away. We should be aware of our surroundings and our life, both of which I have not done much of in the past year.
In the words of my former self, “in order to fully understand a living being, one must be fully aware of every phase of its life, even if it is a miniscule one.” I didn’t understand the full meaning of this when I first wrote it about the phases of plants for a paper about Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe’s theories on plant metamorphosis. This applies to humans as well though. We experience many phases of life but we are not as self-aware as plants or butterflies. I do not think humans are superior because we do not even appreciate our own lives most of the time. If I could come back into the earth after death, I would want to be a plant constantly flowering and blooming and bringing beauty to the earth. What would you come back as? I also think life phases continue after death. One thing that has always bugged me is death but why should it be so taboo or scary? It happens to every single one of us, and is so important to acknowledge now as we witness a lot of death. Death is part of the metamorphosis; let it help you grow, not bring you down. Take this time to reflect on how to be a better person for yourself and for your loved ones and don’t take any moments for granted, even sad ones, even angry moments; take all of them in and experience life for all of its highs and lows.