Emilia Clarke dreamed she said goodbye to her dying father as a butterfly, then one appeared

We are used to seeing celebrities behind a polished lens, looking flawless on red carpets, and seemingly insulated from the agonizing realities of everyday life. But grief is an equalizer that doesn't care about fame. For Emilia Clarke, that barrier between public persona and private heartbreak was shattered back in 2016, after her father, Peter Roderick Clarke, died due to cancer. What stings her even to this day is never being able to say goodbye to her father, as she revealed on the "How To Fail with Elizabeth Day" podcast (@howtofailpod). It has gone viral since being posted on May 19, garnering 2.2 million views so far.

Final days with her father

When the host, Elizabeth Day, asked Clarke about her father's demise, the actress revealed that during the time her father was hospitalized, she was filming an independent movie in Kentucky. It was then that she started having second thoughts for the first time, but her mother suggested she keep working. That's because it is what her father would want. However, soon she received a call informing her that her father was going through an operation that didn't guarantee his survival.

As soon as she heard that, she decided to head home, only to find her dad in a coma upon her arrival. She sat with her dad for almost three days. But then, the people from the film called her to return. Despite the critical circumstances, her mother once again urged her to rejoin the shoot as she only had a couple of weeks' work left. So, she headed back. However, upon returning to Kentucky, she got another call in the middle of the night. This time, it was even more serious, telling her to get back home. And so she left without informing her team.

Visiting as a butterfly

Emilia described how grueling the 10-hour flight home was. "So I'm just gonna be sitting on this flight for, like, 10 hours, and I can't contact anyone," she said. That's when she decided to distract her mind from all the negative thoughts by imagining that she was at the hospital as a butterfly, as it could easily enter the hospital. "I imagined that I'm coming home. Hold on. You're gonna fine," she said. While thinking this, she somehow fell asleep. Surprisingly, in her dream, her dad showed up and said, "I just came to say goodbye," while she stood beside his bed. 

When she got home, she knew that her father was no more. However, once she opened the door, she was stunned to see a butterfly. "I just see my dad in butterflies everywhere. He is everywhere."

Visions of the loved ones

Although many might think it would've been quite sad for Clarke, research shows such experiences are a great way of helping one recover from the loss of their loved one. According to Psyche, nearly 30 to 60% of the widowed people saw the person they had lost after their death. Additionally, people who've seen their loved one after their death suggest that this was a great experience. In fact, 71% treasure that memory, while nearly 20% were happy that it happened to them, and a whopping 68% believe this experience helped them deal with their recovery, as per a study by Cambridge University Press. 

'I see him in hummingbirds'

People in the comments section of the clip were sharing their own such experiences and how they helped them. @hcavanagh, who wrote, "The exact same happened to me. My dad died in the hospital in November, and my mum and I were with him for a couple of days before he passed. We went home after he died, and in my mum's bedroom, there was a huge butterfly flying around. It was my dad." @gollymollers shared, "My dad also died suddenly in 2016. I see him in hummingbirds."

More on Scoop Upworthy

Daughter finds her dad’s note two weeks after his death — and it said exactly what she needed to hear

Woman stumbles upon heartwarming discovery in her late dad's list of things he loved

Woman texted late dad's phone every day for 4 years. Then on his death anniversary, she finally got a reply