She is a Woman, a Wife, a Butterfly

“She is more precious than jewels,

and nothing you desire can compare with her.”

— Proverbs 31:10

PROVERBS tells us that a good wife is from the Lord. Proverbs is equally scathing about the wife who has not nurtured virtue within herself. It is clear, however, that a wife is destined to be good for life, her husband’s ally, a butterfly.

Butterflies are considered graceful by human comparison. They will land upon our hand if we are in a nursery full of them. They land daintily and flutter off just as serenely. They are gentle and sincere, and in their inner beings they are to be relied upon.

To a father his daughter is more precious than jewels. And her husband must understand this. Indeed, a woman’s husband must take over from the father and actualize his wife, meaning that his desire is to ensure she flourishes to her potential.

A father has pride in his daughter, because he is charged by God to ensure she is cared for. The father takes this responsibility most seriously; he will answer to God one day about it. But from within his inner being he cannot but love the woman who was once a little girl, and to him, whilst he respects her womanhood, she will always be his little girl – a most delicate and delightful creature.

The girl who has grown into becoming a woman has her father’s instinct; for men, for the risky situations of life, and for the protection afforded of a wise person’s discernment. She is no fool. To receive her respect, her man, or any man, needs to prove he is worthy. She may be a butterfly but she is no pushover.

Nothing we can desire transcends the grace of the butterfly. She is God’s gift to those in her life, and she has on offer many things which may only be admired.

When a girl becomes a woman and then becomes a wife, she then can become a matriarch. This was always her purpose. The matriarch is a butterfly; exemplifying humility and grace, and cutting through to the truth of matters. She is strength for herself and for others, too.

What is to become of a man in the presence of a butterfly? He can only benefit if he is wise. If he is discerning, life will go well for him as he holds her gently and respectfully in his hand.

***

A woman is like a butterfly, full of grace and gentle in every way. But she is no pushover and her strength is to be admired. A man needn’t hold her too tight in his hand, for she will need to go and come back of her own volition. Like the butterfly, a woman is to be respected and appreciated for who she is.

© 2014 S. J. Wickham.