Figure 1.1 Using the former self to fuel the future self
‘We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes it has gone through to achieve that beauty.’
— Maya Angelou
After hatching, caterpillars eat their own eggshells as fuel to power their future transformation. Caterpillars outgrow their exoskeleton several times as they mature, before something deep within them signals that it is time for a bigger change. This signal starts with a deep impulse, an inkling at a cellular level, programmed deep in its DNA. The cells that initiate the change are aptly called imaginal discs, from the word imagination.
Imaginal discs begin life as single-celled organisms and remain dormant until they instinctively awaken when it is time for metamorphosis. Imaginal cells are so unlike the caterpillar's cells that the immune system attacks them as invaders. Despite being rejected by the organism, imaginal cells persevere, multiplying within the caterpillar. These new cells resonate at the same frequency, communicating and coordinating to overwhelm the caterpillar's immune system. They induce the caterpillar to find a twig and harden its skin, which acts as a cocoon. This is when a caterpillar becomes a chrysalis. Then, the caterpillar goes through a beautiful transformation by dissolving into a nutritious liquid that fuels the metamorphosis ...
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