"Grandma, I'm getting married next week. I sincerely hope you can attend my wedding. If you know, please transform into a butterfly and come to see me!"
This is a WeChat message sent by a blogger to his deceased grandmother on the eve of his wedding. Unexpectedly, on the wedding day, just as he was tearfully expressing his deep feelings for his grandmother on the wedding stage, a white butterfly suddenly appeared on the flowerless podium. It flew directly towards the blogger, landing on his chest, perfectly resting above the boutonnière of his suit.
The appearance of the white butterfly seemed to be the embodiment of his deceased grandmother, bringing her blessings and love to her grandson. At that moment, the blogger was overwhelmed with emotion and longing, knowing that his grandmother had always been by his side, silently watching over him.
The white butterfly lingered on the blogger's chest for a while before slowly flying up into the sky. The blogger looked up and saw the butterfly dancing gracefully in the sunlight, as if bidding him farewell, or perhaps telling him that his grandmother would always be with him until the end of his life.
After the wedding, the blogger shared this experience online, instantly resonating with countless netizens. Because everyone has one or two grandparents who hold an important place in their hearts. In childhood, they accompanied you as you grew up, cooked delicious food for you, helped you with your homework, and even fulfilled many of your "unreasonable" requests. They are the closest people in your life, an existence you can never forget. Even if they have passed away, that bond is like a brand, deeply etched in your heart.
Before my grandmother was laid to rest, I also encountered a butterfly. At that time, my mother, aunt, and I were at the hospital discussing funeral arrangements with the funeral service staff.
The butterfly was entirely black, three times larger than usual. It flew out from the room where my grandmother had passed away, rushed towards me, and when it was about a meter away, it swooped down and brushed past me, landing on my mother's back. I was extremely frightened and dared not look directly, only sneaking a few glances, and in no time, it slipped away and vanished inexplicably.
Like the blogger, I believe the butterfly was the embodiment of my grandmother.
In ancient China, butterflies symbolized love, which is why there is the story of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai transforming into butterflies. In ancient Greek and Roman culture, butterflies were seen as souls released from the body, transitioning from this world to the next.
Thus, butterflies have been imbued with symbolic meanings of death and rebirth, often used in funerals and memorial occasions.
More importantly, many coincidental events unexpectedly occurred around the time of my grandmother's passing.
Before my grandmother passed away, I could never see her.
When she was gravely ill and unconscious, she was often moved to different hospitals due to a lack of beds in the intensive care unit. Every two weeks, she had to be transferred to another hospital.
The last transfer of my grandmother was arranged by my mother, aunt, and me.
That day, the ambulance arrived very late, making us wait for half a day. It wasn't until 1 PM that the vehicle arrived at the hospital. The ambulance felt like an imperial decree; once it arrived, the family of the patient had to go to receive it, and when it left, it did not wait for anyone. At that time, we were eating at a restaurant near the hospital, and upon learning that the ambulance had arrived, my aunt decided to let her and my mother board the ambulance first to accompany my grandmother to the hospital she was being transferred to, while I was left to handle the aftermath—paying the bill and taking a taxi there myself.
Later, my mother told me that on the ambulance, my grandmother, who had been in a long-term coma and deaf, surprisingly opened her eyes. Hearing my mother and aunt calling her, she looked around in the direction of the sound. Perhaps she had used all her strength to see her loved ones one last time.
When I arrived at the hospital, my grandmother had already been taken into the intensive care unit, and she could no longer see my face.
Documentaries say that after the heart stops beating, one does not immediately lose all consciousness; the body's organs will stop functioning in an orderly manner (from the least useful to the most useful): for example, the stomach is the first to stop working, while hearing persists until the end. Some people, before passing away, concentrate the energy of other organs to the optic nerve because they want to hold their breath and see their loved ones one last time.
My great-grandmother (my father's grandmother) loved my father the most. In her final moments, she held on to her frail body until my father arrived, at which point she was willing to close her eyes.
A few days after my grandmother was transferred, "immense fortune" unexpectedly came my way—I was inexplicably added to a money-making WeChat group, where a large number of "tasks" were sent out daily. These tasks were very simple, and upon completion, one could earn dozens or even hundreds of yuan. Therefore, whether at home or outside, I kept staring at my phone, afraid of missing any money-making opportunity. In order to earn money, I took risks, even refusing to put down my phone while crossing the street. The road was busy with traffic and had no traffic lights, yet I was able to navigate through it safely without any accidents.
Three days later, the group owner started asking me to do larger cashback tasks, with a starting bet of 1,000 yuan. Coincidentally, my combined balance in WeChat and Alipay was not enough to reach one thousand. Since I had previously "saved" 600 yuan, I had some trust in the group, and in order to earn more money, I bravely borrowed from my mother.
Unexpectedly, my mother firmly refused, saying that there is no such thing as free money! My mother's admonition gradually made me wake up, and I carefully examined myself—I was born honest, often had my stationery stolen by classmates in elementary school, and had my wallet stolen on the bus during middle school. What right did I have to bear such unearned wealth?!
To prove that I was not meant to enjoy such fortune, I searched for cases of online shopping fraud on short video platforms. Interestingly, an hour later, I stumbled upon a story that was almost identical to my own experience, the only difference being that the blogger lost 100,000 yuan, while I had not been scammed and instead gained 600 yuan.
A week later, the hospital issued a critical illness notice for my grandmother, stating that she would leave within three days. That evening, my grandmother's heartbeat was weak, and the medical staff worked hard to resuscitate her. After my grandmother stabilized a bit, my cousin (my grandmother's grandson) and his family went to the hospital to visit her.
I hoped my grandmother could open her eyes and see me again, so I asked my mother if I could visit her in the hospital. However, my mother said that my grandmother's condition was very unstable and she could leave at any time, and I would need to accompany her to handle the funeral arrangements. For such matters, one must retain sufficient energy and spirit; being sleep-deprived or overly sorrowful could easily lead to illness.
Hearing my mother say this, and unable to accept the fact that my grandmother was about to leave, I opened Taobao (a shopping website) and carefully searched for funeral supplies—funeral clothes, coffins, and burial money... I also looked up the customs for funerals online—apparently, for those without religious beliefs, one must continuously chant "Amitabha" in front of the deceased; before and after entering the mortuary, one can ward off evil by knocking on the "heavenly drum"—the upper and lower rows of teeth continuously clashing; after the ancestors are laid to rest, one can recite the rebirth mantra to guide them, allowing them to leave in peace...
Little did I expect that within just two hours, my grandmother would pass away due to ineffective resuscitation—she ultimately could not wait for me to arrive... However, in the following six months, I dreamt of her three times: the first time, I lied to her that I was in a relationship; the second time, she reassured me that she was doing well in another world; the third time, I had a miscarriage during my wedding, coinciding with my grandfather's passing, and she even asked me if I would attend my grandfather's funeral...
Now, whenever I see a black butterfly dancing gracefully, I think of my grandmother's kind smile. I know that butterfly is the embodiment of my grandmother, and she is telling me in her own way: don't be afraid, don't be sad, I will always be with you, forever.