Neal Sehgal

“A little boy fell in love with a butterfly
whom he held close in the clasp of his hands.
But more with each passing hour, she would
applaud her limbs to encourage an escape to
be free. While the boy was innocent, he was
not unwise for he knew it was a crime to cage
those with wings. So, he bowed before the
great black willow, unfolded his praying
hands, and worshiped upon a wish that she
would be seduced to stay. But as she ascended
into an echo of his eye, he breathed her a kiss
with a sigh and said, “one day, I will grow tall
until my chin can touch the sky and meet you
on the clouds of what could have been.”
― Neal Sehgal, Elegy for a Butterfly