A Kaleidoscope of Wisdom

Sunday, May 18, 2025

Fifth Sunday of Easter

The Rev. Jennifer Fisher (she/her)

Founder, Launchpad Partners

Founder, Imagine Cincinnati Allied Christian

When my oldest son was about two years old, we were inside watching Sesame Street together. It was an episode about butterflies, and he suddenly turned to me and said the word butterfly for the first time – his first three- syllable word!

I was in seminary and learning Hebrew at the time, and I knew how hard it was to learn a new language. So, to hear my first child say his first big word was… thrilling.

It felt big.

Then as we often did, we put on our coats to go outside to play in the yard. And I kid you not, when we stepped out onto our front stoop, there in my flowerpot, opening her wings for the first time, was a butterfly who had mere seconds before emerged from her chrysalis. She was just hanging out, feeling her wings, as if stretching before getting out of bed. My son and I watched in wonder as

she took her time crawling off the plant and onto the brick wall of our house, up and up, until she reached the gutter at the second story and then, just like that, she took off. Out into the world, on her very first flight. I almost couldn’t believe it.

Those two events back-to-back felt full of so much wonder and awe.

And it also made me fascinated with butterflies – the stories they tell us, the lessons they teach us. About transformation. And awe. About taking flight. About finding the way together, in community. Did you know that butterflies in a group are often referred to as a kaleidoscope?

Monarch butterflies, in particular, have grabbed my imagination. Every year, millions of these delicate little creatures migrate from the U.S. and Canada to Southern California and Mexico, nearly 2,500 miles! But here’s the wild thing: it takes five generations of Monarchs to make the whole journey. Each one typically lives only 3-6 weeks. So, if you’re born in the middle of the journey, how do you know which way to fly?

We don’t have all the answers yet, but what citizen science volunteers all across the continent have helped us learn so far is that every butterfly has it within themselves to know the way.

They use their senses, their intuition, something in their DNA, to find oases of rest along the journey. They even land on the same trees as their ancestors. Something

within their deepest selves knows the way to find home, and knows how to find community along the way. And get this, the last generation? The one that completes the journey? They can live up to 9 months!

For me, the monarch butterfly has become this symbol of wisdom, a reminder that our children are meant to soar. But also that they need an oasis. And that’s what we try to do as their parents and caregivers—to be and build their safe space to land. We gather with their community and offer places of rest, wisdom and direction on the journey. And we give them room to trust that they know their own way. We do it all for our generation. And the next and the next and the next.

Reflection

What are the ways in which your family is creating oasis for the next generation?

Is there something more you can do to help cultivate their inner wisdom?

Action

Spend some time today learning about the Monarch migration and why they are listed as endangered species. Where are the butterflies in their journey right now?

What can you do to prepare a space for them in your area of Ohio? Maybe plant some milkweed seeds so they have a place to land or put out pollinator water dishes.

You can start to learn more at saveourmonarchs.org.