Butterfly

A butterfly flutters its ephemeral wings propelling it into motion,
Its faintest ripples disturb the air, like a drop on a tranquil ocean.

With no care but to fly its destined course wherever fate may lend,
Not knowing the product of its tiny force in the chaos linking beginning to end.

If we believe cause leads to effect, the breath that is thus created,
Can impact an outcome we do not elect, in a future that seems unrelated.

Like a pebble rolling down a steep hill can dislodge one stone, then another,
‘Til many join and become a throng tumbling along with each other.

The actions done just in the moment thus, can have impact that is unexpected.
Life is a sum of all its components, and they’re all very truly connected.

Be thoughtful of what is shown to one who’s innocent and fresh to life,
For your words or deeds may change a path, and the diffr’nce ‘tween fortune and strife.

So going on from day to day as through our lives we dance,
Take time to ponder on the way the effect you may impose on chance.

Edward Lorenz, MIT meteorologist, popularized the notion of the butterfly effect: where a small turbulence, such as a butterfly flapping its wings in South America can affect global weather.  His paper “Predictability: Does the Flap of a Butterfly’s Wings in Brazil Set Off a Tornado in Texas?” introduced the butterfly image, courtesy of meteorologist Philip Merilees, who came up with the title.