Sorry Bellagio.
You and your Celine Dion chortling, mega
tear-jerker, water-spouting light show have been majorly upstaged. Upstaged by 500
zillion tiny little, and possibly adorable bugs just larger than your pinky
fingernail who start their show just as the lights go down on the Green Mountains
of Vermont.
The gentle, magical, unscripted symphony of Fireflies.
There is a gut reaction to the concept of fireflies. From
our childhood – chasing them happily, almost giddily, through fields, possibly
in slow motion, and of our families spending time together during the long,
warm summer vacation.
Bathing suits and watermelon and cookouts with sticks covered
in marshmallow sweetness. Aunties and uncles and cousins altogether for our once
a year gathering.
So when the fireflies come out as dusk ends in Vermont,
there is already an awe-some feeling of familiarity and warmth in our chests.
Blinking their little hearts out, they seem to rise from the
fields and contrast against the deep, dark, tall trees. Forty feet high and as
wide as the field can go, they show-off their Cirque-worthy acrobatics to the
thrill of their audience. Us.
And each time there is the wonder: how and why do they do
this magical feat? There’s no smarmy white-shoed
Vegas agent coordinating an hourly wage for a couple hour, buggy light show 7
days a week.
My ten year old informs me that there are two different
chemicals in their bodies that react and create “glow” – a sort of bioluminescence,
like those creatures deep in the sea. And they talk to each other with light to
attract mates. Naturally. It’s always comes back to the birds and the bees,
ahem, bugs these days…
And, finally, take time to enjoy these little glowing guys.
Because, sadly, rivaling that Celine Dion song coming to an end, there’s a
final teary performance of these little creatures going on – their numbers are
decreasing and their populations are disappearing. Humans are mostly the culprit
and we CAN do something to help.
Plug in and enjoy.
Namaste & Three Cheers. –a
More about fireflies and how to help: http://www.firefly.org/
No comments:
Post a Comment