Dolly Parton’s fans have been leaving butterfly emojis in their tributes to her, following her death from cancer. But butterflies have been an important part of the “9 to 5” singer’s life since childhood, and she saw them as her own personal symbol.
Dolly Parton’s Love of Butterflies
Parton released the 1974 song “Love Is Like a Butterfly.” She has worn butterfly clothing, like the bold butterfly dress she shared a photo of on Instagram on August 5, accompanied by the caption, “Love is like a butterfly. As soft and gentle as a sigh.” Dollywood’s logo is a butterfly, and her perfume, Dolly–Scent From Above, has a cute pink butterfly on top of the bottle.
Parton even had a butterfly tattoo. In an appearance on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, in 1996, Leno noticed she had a tattoo on her arm. “Yeah, I have a little tattoo. Don’t start pulling my clothes down,” Parton said. She revealed she has two tattoos, one of a little angel and another of a butterfly.
Speaking of her tattoos, Parton told W magazine in October 2021 that she had “a few little tattoos here and there.” She continued, “Most of my tattoos came because I’m very fair and I have a tendency to scar when I get any kind of cut. I’ve had surgeries for different things, and if the scars didn’t heal properly, I just gotta put tattoos to take the sting out. I don’t have the real heavy, dark tattoos. Mine are all pastel. And I have more than one!”
Parton also spoke to W magazine about her love for butterflies, which began in childhood. “I used to get in trouble with my mom, ’cause they’d have to come find me and I’d be chasing a butterfly from one bush to another,” she recalled. She continued, “Butterflies don’t sting, they don’t bite, and they are so beautiful. And I just kind of related to them with my own personality. I claimed them as my little symbol.”
Remembering Dolly Parton’s Beautiful Life
Parton was loved by many, as shown by the outpouring of love and tributes on social media. The butterfly has been used in tributes, including one from Brandi Carlile, who began her heartfelt message on Facebook with the sentence: “Dolly traded in her butterfly wings today.”
In Jimmy Fallon’s heartfelt statement on Instagram, he also used butterfly symbolism. “And like most butterflies, they stay for a moment – captivate you, fascinate you, mesmerize you and then fly away far too soon. I love you Dolly. I will always miss you,” he wrote.
Parton was much more than a great talent; she was an incredible person, which is why the news of her death at age 80 has left so many heartbroken. Her nephew, Bryan Seaver, announced her passing in a video statement on behalf of the family.
“My family and I have shared a lifetime of beautiful memories with Dolly, but so have you,” Seaver said. “She has always been on your television, your record player, your CD, and on your phone playlist, becoming an extended part of your family whether you liked it or not. Our family and the team she has entrusted with her legacy will work diligently to ensure her spirit will live with us forever.”
He continued, “Dolly was a farmer, just like her daddy; he farmed the soil, she farmed songs and happiness. Dolly called me and said she wants to rest in a beautiful bed of plush cotton because after a life of wearing heavy rhinestones, she finally deserves to be comfortable and have some rest.”
