Once upon a time, in the lovely warm spring, a small caterpillar called Cattie was feeling very sad. All around her, in the flower garden, the butterflies were flying and singing merrily. “Oh! I wish I were a butterfly too!” she sighed, but at the same time, she was so frightened at the thought of what must happen first that two big tears rolled slowly from her eyes.
Just then she heard a little voice, which said:
“Do not cry, Cattie, do not cry;
The butterfly is coming by.
So she says to you, Cattie,
Be a patient little girl,
Though you are a caterpillar,
There will come a lovely day,
When a butterfly you will be,
And for ever happy play.”
“Is that really true?” said Cattie, wiping her eyes and looking up.
“Indeed it is, dear, indeed it is,” said her brother and sister, who had heard what the voice said. “But come inside our green house with us; it is damp and dewy out here.”
Just as they reached the house, a great big butterfly came flying over to them, and Cattie begged him to tell her if she would really change into a butterfly, and to be quick about it, for she longed to play like her brother and sister.
“The change will soon come, Cattie, but not so soon as you think,” said the butterfly. “Day by day, and week by week, you will grow into something more beautiful, till at last one fine day, the real butterfly will step forth and stretch its beautiful wings. Then, Cattie, will you be like me. Mind you take care of yourself till that happy day comes. Sleep and eat well.”
When Cattie heard this she felt consoled, but now that it was no longer very hot she bade good night to her brother and sister, jumped into her house, and went to sleep.
Day by day and week by week passed by, and Cattie grew bigger and bigger. However, she began to feel very blank, for she was now not allowed to play at all. The warm sun shone down on her, and the kind bees ever now and then brought her honey to drink. This pleased her, but still she felt very sad, especially when she saw that her brother and sister played all alone.
One day, when she had just finished her midday meal, she suddenly felt so sleepy that she fancied that she should drop off to sleep where she was. At that moment a large white butterfly came and sat on her favorite branch.
“What are you going to do?” asked Cattie.
“Nothing special,” replied the butterfly. “I just came to tell you how much I enjoy life. You will soon know the same, for I am sure that you are the caterpillar who is to turn into a butterfly. So I only just came to say good-day to you.” And with these words, the butterfly rose in the air.
“How I should like to be like you!” cried Cattie with a heavy sigh. Then she begged him to stay. “You must plant a little grain of fat in the ground, and I in time hope to visit the flower garden as a lovely butterfly.”
“But you will not wait so long!” exclaimed the butterfly, and flew off as fast as lightning.
This made Cattie quite happy, and she went on eating the whole day long. However, soon afterwards she felt very ill, and threw up her food. Luckily she bought more food, but at the same time her head fell down, her eyes changed, her feet grew, and in four hours’ time she burst her house all in pieces.
All this frightened Cattie very much, for she was ashamed to tell her brother and sister that she was really a fly. Her belly grew larger and larger, she was obliged to fly, so she sat on the blackish bark of a pear tree. Cattie’s brother and sister had just crept out of their house better teachers. They thought so much of Cattie that they said, “Bravo! Cattie; we are so glad to see you, but we should like you to give up eating all these nasty flies.”
But, Cattie felt quite ill, and could eat nothing. The next day the teacher came hopping in, looked at Cattie, and said, “Your old house is lying before you. Fly like your brother and sister, and plant your granny in the ground.”
In the evening her brother and sister came to visit Cattie, in order to tell her to do as their fly said.
The next day she said to all the flies, “Where are you going to?” And they answered, “To the church, to the Virgin Mary.”
But Cattie did not think it right to invite them, for she had raised Cattie nicely.
So Cattie went to sleep, and never woke up again, but in her place there stood before her, a pretty little butterfly. But she went back to great Cattie, and told her to let her granny lie in the ground, and told all what I have now told you.