By Cynthia K. Johnson
Last Sunday afternoon we drove deep into the woods in a section of Harford County which happens to be a part of Gunpowder Falls State Park. It’s a favorite spot of ours, away from all technology and consumerism. We seemed to be in need of healing from nature that can only happen as the spring foliage writes over this past winter’s long and frigid tale.
As we meandered along the water we became enchanted by two yellow butterflies flitting around; I especially was focusing on them, as I was pointing them out to our two year old grandson, who was curiously unsure if he liked butterflies. I held up my hand hoping one would light on my finger and though one never did, as I continued chasing them in my effort to amuse him, I began to see the waves of energy shifting around their wings. Observing energy around things is not uncommon for me, but I had never seen the actual energy shift from an insect’s movement. The low light from being in a forested area, made the perfect type of light to see subtle shifts in energy. These experiences always surprise and delight me, as if each time is the first time and in fact time seems to stand still. Many things have to be in place for this to happen for me, for one, I need to be relaxed and in a “good” space. It doesn’t get much better then when I am with my grandson.
Later that night, I began thinking about a theory I read about years ago called “The Butterfly Effect.” Sometime in the early 1960’s, a meteorologist named Edward Lorenz, while looking at global weather patterns, discovered by chance, that weather cannot be predicted with much accuracy. The tiniest shift in energy can not only alter the weather, but the future itself. He used the scenario: One flap of a butterfly’s wing in China can trigger a tornado in Texas, or for that matter, keep one from happening.
This metaphor refers to the idea that all systems no matter how chaotic they appear, are actually unfolding within a very precise underlying order known as sensitive chaos. Very simple or small events such as the flapping of a butterfly’s wing cause very complex behavior and events. Perhaps my grandson was more aware of the stillness in the woods that afternoon then I realized, perhaps he felt what I saw, or maybe he saw the energy moving around the butterflies too, and was sensitive to the sensitive chaos that was occurring within the cornucopia of life that was surrounding us.
When we find ourselves amidst chaos, it is not always clear as to why or what is happening. Is it really chaotic, or are we fighting the very change we need? Perhaps the universe is simply rearranging your life, to make room for what you have asked for, and these events unfold within a very precise underlying order. Let’s say you make a simple prayer in the morning to arrive safely at your destination. The next thing you know, you miss your flight. Or you lose your wallet. These chaotic events, could be keeping you from being hit by a car, or, may lead you to the person who will change your life. Maybe you had rain on your wedding day because a struggling farmer prayed for rain else he would lose an entire crop. Perhaps a more important prayer was being answered. I would like to continue believing that the intelligence within the unified field of energy we are all connected to, answers our requests in that order. And so, when we look at the state of the world, the economy, the warring, we often feel so powerless to change it. This could not be more false. We are fiercely powerful. How will you use yours today?
Live with intention, take responsibility for your own energy, and keep your signals clear. If you are in a funk, you are changing everything around you. Clean it up. Go into the woods if you need to, lean up against a tree, something bigger then yourself, and remember we are all in this together, and are changed by the very changing of everything, every second of every day. We are all connected, every race, every creed, all of nature, including every animal, plant, insect and microbe.
If one small flap of a butterfly’s wing in your garden can change the weather, it is time we all took responsibility for the state of our lives and minds and realize, we also, are changing history. How will you change the world?