Butterfly
A butterfly leaves the cocoon and rises, which makes it a leading symbol of change and freedom. Traditional reading took butterflies as good news and good ties, so one settling on you was a good omen of something welcome arriving. Butterflies over a flower bed mean affection is on the rise, and a pair flying together means pairing up. Reaching for one and missing signals that what you want is still out of reach.
A butterfly changes its shape from a caterpillar and takes to the air, so in dreams it means transformation and a lightened heart. Watching a butterfly come to the flowers, old folk took it as a sign of good things arriving of their own accord. Where and how it flew decides the meaning.
Readings by Situation
A butterfly settling on you
A good omen of something welcome arriving. Tradition read a butterfly alighting on the body as word reaching you. If you are waiting on news, this reads well.
Butterflies over a flower bed
A sign that affection is on the rise. Tradition took flowers and butterflies as a matched pair. With a connection ahead, this reads well.
A pair flying together
A good omen of pairing up. Tradition read butterflies flying side by side as a symbol of growing old together. If a marriage talk is underway, it reads as going well.
Reaching for one and missing
A sign that what you want is still out of reach. If the regret was sharp, there is something you do not want to lose. Read it less as failure than as a call not to rush.
Tradition handles the butterfly as an auspicious symbol. Missing one does not mean you actually lose anything. It also comes up often ahead of a change.