by Paul Brian Campbell, SJ  

One day I was walking through an open field and in the distance my eye caught sight of something in the pasture grass, some movements. As I approached nearer and nearer I noticed a great, big monarch butterfly fluttering its wings frantically. It was caught, but the sad and strange part about it was that its beauty — its wings — were holding it down, captive. Three long strands of grass loosely connected at the top enclosed it, but because the wings were so huge these three tee-pee forming blades of grass were enough to keep the butterfly from escaping into the open spaces and using its most beautiful attributes. If it would only calm down and slowly walk away from this very loosely knit cage it could fly away forever and be free.

Calm down, butterfly.

It is your beauty that is keeping you captive,

your beautiful large wings.

Calm down… and walk away… then fly, fly, fly…

– written on July 13,1986 by the late Ray Desgroseilliers, S.J.