‘Hope for the Flowers’ is one of the books that truly inspired me in my youth.
It is an allegorical tale of two caterpillars and their hopes and longings,
their search for meaning and their eventual magical transformation
into beautiful butterflies.
Advent is a time of hope and longing.
In man’s search for meaning, he longs for life everlasting.
In today’s secular society, man’s search for meaning, at its best.
is often about making a difference or making a contribution.
The after-life and eternal life are non-issues.
Yellow, one of the caterpillars in the book, would not have imagined
how she could be transformed from an unsightly caterpillar into a colorful butterfly.
But she trusted her instincts.
She ‘died’ in her cocoon to magically emerge as a butterfly.
The same hand that wrought the heavens with the stars and the planets
has written in my heart a similar instinct
– a deep longing and a fervent hope for everlasting life.
Advent is a time for remembrance of this hope and longing,
the time of waiting for the Incarnated One who will show us
how all of this will come to pass.