When All Has Been Said
by Lois Parker Edstrom

What else can we say about the butterfly?
So familiar, the intricate

black and orange design, fragile wings
rimmed with white dots,

the butterfly’s well-known symbolism,
and metaphor of transformation.

Yet, when a butterfly alights nearby
it is like an unexpected visit

from a sovereign head of state,
a monarch in our midst.

Like a strange angel it
suddenly appears

carrying a message of vulnerability
and beauty.

Its essence enters the body, a fluttering
that accelerates the heart.

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