One of my favorite memories from when I was little is laying in the soft grass of our backyard. Beforehand, I’d usually run hard on the property my parents owned, (a couple of acres with the woods surrounding us). Little did I know how much I’d look back on that period of my life and use it as a reference of what I’m drawn to most, the woods…nature. After running my heart out, I’d lay there until the sun began setting, listening to the cricket’s chirp away, hoping my parents wouldn’t call out to me for dinner. I stared into the nearest bushes and waited patiently…and then it began. The small glowing bulbs of the fireflies haunted me and I was hypnotized by their poetic dance. They sang softly to me through their calm rhythm, and I longed to have one of my own. A firefly. I imagined a small fairy with a kind face, who was so eager to be my friend and protect me from all my biggest fears. What must it be like to glow so radiantly? Every now and then I’d mindlessly run into the brush and leap from bush to bush, determined I’d catch one of my very own. Fireflies still visit my thoughts often, all these years later. I never see them in the area I currently live in. My heart still longs for a chance to plop in the grass, and stare into the darkness, mesmerized by the lulling calmness they permeated through me. Funny how something so small has such magnetic lure. This world has so much darkness, so much causing stress, worry and pain…no wonder we’re always seeking out the light, searching for something to soothe us. We all can’t plop in the grass and find fireflies to gaze at, but hopefully we can all unearth what soothes us and quietens our worries. Find your “firefly” and don’t let her go.
