Butterfly Needs a Nap

**If children’s books are the way that we as a society help our children learn the lessons we think they need as they grow up, I wanted to write something that could help me now if I had learned it earlier in life.**

There once was a butterfly. She was a very busy butterfly. She wanted to do so many things. She flew this way and that. She landed on trees and flowers, humans, and animals. She was always trying new things, but she was also trying to help her friends and her family. Life was so exciting, and she felt like she had purpose.

She kept a list of all the things she needed to do.

She dropped her children off at school then helped her friend Ladybug move. She flew all the way across the forest to babysit Beetle’s children. She checked in on her friend Grasshopper who was having a hard time. She visited Grandmother Butterfly. She went to another part of the forest to pollinate her meadow. She brought leaves home for her children. She tidied up their house. She cleaned the dishes. She washed their clothes. She went from flower to flower, drinking the nectar, and pollinating the meadow. She played with the children. She taught them how to be good butterflies when they grew up. The list kept growing. She was up early in the morning until late at night, helping her friends and doing her Butterfly job. She was very busy, but she was not happy. She was also very tired. 

One morning as she drank the dew drops from a leaf, she saw herself in the water. Her wings were normally very colorful and bright. The bottom of her wings were a dark magenta color that moved into a deep blue. The top part of her wings were a grassy green color. Her wings shimmered a bit usually, but now the color of her wings were dull and grey. Her antennae were drooping. She looked a bit deflated, but it did not matter. She was up. It was early. She had a long list of things to get done that day, but she was so tired. It was going to be another long one. 

She started on her list. She did a task and crossed it off, but the list never got smaller. The list just kept growing and growing. It was going to be there tomorrow and the next day, and she was never going to be done. She saw it change shape and surround her with the things that she still had to do. She closed her eyes until the list became right sized again.

Then she threw her list away and went home to take a nap. 

She woke up refreshed and she started a new list, but then she threw that one away too. 

From then on, she kept her list to the five most important things she needed to dot, and had a mid-morning nap every day. She was much happier. Being busy does not mean being happy, and there should always be time for a nap.