One winter, I decided to do my own version of light therapy. Midwest winters can be clouded for weeks at a time. Painting a series of very brightly colored butterflies helped me get through the blues. I decided not to tone down the colors, which I learned to do in art school, but to paint the butterflies with bright raw color.
If you are interested in preserving butterfly species, you can help to defend their habitat: a natural meadow will have plants they need to survive, such as milkweed. Butterflies are pollinators and without them certain plants would not exist, such as certain thistles. The milk thistle is an herbal medicine used to treat liver problems, with restorative properties.
Plant flowers to attract butterflies. One important thing you can do to help butterflies as well as your own health, is to use alternatives to pesticides.The Rodale Press, which publishes the Organic Gardening Magazine and many helpful books, has compiled an enormous amount of information on the subject. Rodale also studied and promoted organic farming methods.