Names matter to me.
Maybe that’s because a good name can become a tiny story all by itself. It can tell you something about where you’ve been, what you value, and perhaps even where you hope to go next.And “Hello Butterfly” has always felt like that kind of name.
It Starts With Hello
I love the word “hello”.
It’s such a small word, but think about what it really means.
Hello is connection.
It’s the moment two people acknowledge one another. It’s the beginning of a conversation, a friendship, an adventure, a collaboration—or sometimes an entirely new chapter of life.
When we say hello, we are essentially saying:
“I see you. Come sit with me for a while.”
Every conversation begins somewhere. Every friendship has a first hello. Every love story does, too.
And sometimes we even have to say hello to a new version of ourselves.
Hello, new town.
Hello, new job.
Hello, new relationship.
Hello, new adventure.
Hello, whatever comes next.
There is something wonderfully hopeful about that.
And Then There’s the Butterfly
Butterflies have fascinated me for years.
They are beautiful, of course—but I think what draws me to them goes much deeper than pretty wings.
Butterflies represent transformation, emergence, renewal hope…
They remind us that becoming something new is not always a tidy process.
Sometimes there is a caterpillar.
Sometimes there is a chrysalis.
Sometimes there is a long stretch when absolutely nothing seems to be happening.
And then one day—
wings.
There’s also the simple joy of seeing one.
No matter how many butterflies I have seen in my life, some tiny part of my brain always reacts:
“Oh! Look! A butterfly!”
There is a little spark of happiness attached to them.
At least there is for me.
My fascination eventually grew well beyond simply admiring them. My backyard became a certified Monarch Waystation, filled not only with milkweed and nectar plants but with no fewer than ten other species of host plants for a variety of butterflies and moths.
Once you begin paying attention to butterflies, you discover something wonderful: there is an entire tiny world happening around us that most of us barely notice.
Eggs tucked beneath leaves.
Caterpillars munching away.
Chrysalises hidden in plain sight.
Bees gathering pollen.
Hummingbirds hovering over flowers.
Life everywhere.
You just have to stop long enough to see it.
Put Them Together…
So when I was searching for a name that could hold the things I wanted to create, **Hello Butterfly** felt right.
“Hello” is connection and beginnings.
“Butterfly” is transformation, hope, beauty and becoming. When I see a butterfly, I feel my spirit.
Together, “Hello” and “Butterfly” say something very close to what I want all of my work to be about:
Connecting with people as they move into whatever comes next.
Sometimes that means helping two people stand together and say *yes* to the next chapter of their lives.
Sometimes it means photographing a flower because the light fell across it in exactly the right way.
Sometimes it means baking something buttery and delicious just because ordinary Tuesdays deserve a little sweetness, too.
And sometimes it means caring for the creatures—large and very, very small—that share our lives.
The Hello Family Keeps Growing
That idea eventually gave birth to a few other “Hellos.”
There is “Hello Fido”, our house- and pet-sitting service. The name is playful, but the idea behind it is still connection. Pets are family. They have routines, favorite places to sleep, peculiar little habits and very definite opinions about when dinner should be served.
Caring for someone’s animals while they’re away is really about allowing those animals to stay connected to the home and life they know.
Then came “Hello Hummingbird”.
That one feels especially appropriate because hummingbirds create exactly the same little spark of delight for me that butterflies do.
A flash of iridescent green.
That improbable little hovering body.
The sudden zip! past your head when you’re standing too close to the feeder.
Hello Hummingbird grew from the idea of helping people safely maintain hummingbird feeders—keeping them clean, fresh and welcoming during migration season—while also encouraging something bigger: creating spaces where hummingbirds and other pollinators can thrive.
And that circles right back to the butterflies.
Native flowers.
Healthy habitats.
Tiny gardens.
Little pockets of sanctuary.
Maybe “Hello” Is the Whole Point
The older I get, the more I think life is made up of a long series of hellos.
Some are enormous.
Hello, marriage.
Hello, motherhood.
Hello, retirement.
Hello, starting over.
Others are almost impossibly small.
Hello, hummingbird outside the kitchen window.
Hello, dog waiting at the front door.
Hello, monarch resting on the milkweed.
Hello, flower blooming where you didn’t remember planting one.
Perhaps living with intention is simply learning to notice those moments.
To recognize the beginnings.
To welcome the transformations.
To stay curious enough to look closely at the small things.
And whenever possible, to leave a little room in your life for wonder.
So that’s why “Hello Butterfly”.
A greeting.
A connection.
A transformation. And, hopefully, a tiny spark of joy.
P.S. I realize I haven’t been especially good at the hello part lately. Life handed me a few surprises: divorce, a new hip, a totaled car, a soul-crushing job search, and a rather unexpected season of becoming, so I suppose I’ve been tucked away in my own little chrysalis for a while. I’m still figuring out what the next version of me looks like—but I think the wings are beginning to unfurl.