Fireflies in the Grass

Last night, I was sitting out in the hot tub, and noticed some fireflies in the grass. Their fairie lights always fascinated me. The magic was still about them, undispelled by years of adult rational living.

One of them was lit constantly, as fireflies do when they're dying, and I wondered what had injured it, and why the fireflies were in the grass instead of sparkling in the night air. Then I remembered.

Last morning, I prayed to the gods to give me a bug-free backyard. I prayed by hooking my hose to a pesticide and spraying it over the grass and shrubs. The mosquitoes had been horrible as I had tried to catch a few meditative moments outside, and I decided to do something about it.

And the gods answered my prayer. But I hadn't thought about the fireflies.

This is our dilemma, isn't it? The wonderful power we have gained to conquer disease, build a better world with better food, assure the ability to stay warm in the winter, a better world with transportation and education and medication - that same power is what has enabled us to destroy forests and mountains, wipe out species, and alter the temperature of the planet to what may turn out to be a lethal amount. How can we know today what we will need tomorrow to survive? Which actions will we regret, and which will turn out to be wise?

We are a naked child sitting in the grass playing with a loaded gun, incapable of comprehending the power that lies in our hands.

Comment posted by Patrick Levasseur
at 7/29/2006 10:44:00 AM
I had forgotten all about fireflies as a child until I moved to northern Vermont this year. My first night there it was pitch black, without the moon as I hadn't yet turned any lights on from my nap, pondering my fate and lonelyness. To my horror I saw these eerie lights flashing through the kitchen window out in the yard and my heart sank with fear as I got the nerve to go outside and investigate. I was suddenly taken back to my childhood and remembered the fairies that would float along in the air as the light faded in the sky. There were hundreds of them both high and low, illuminating the pitch black so I was able to see the different parts of the yard for just a moment, and then disapearing again in to blackness. I could hear the bullfrogs in the pond as they took turns singing to one another and suddenly wasn't afraid anymore. I felt so grateful, my heart was pounding, and felt as though it was going to explode. I wasn't alone for that while, I finally had a home at such a wonderful place, mosquito bites and all.

Comment posted by Anonymous
at 7/19/2006 7:34:00 AM
I agree with your comments, Gene. When I was a young child, on a summer night I would look at and chase after the fireflies (also called lightning bugs) in the back yard, and look up at the stars, but now I don't see either as much as before in the DC area, perhaps because of pollution, although I saw fireflies in the back yard of the people who hosted the Folklore Society's monthly Open Sing most recently; apparently they thrive only in certain kinds of places. Humanity is harming life on our planet in a number of ways, and I feel concerned about it. By the way, I enjoyed all that our group did last Sunday evening at your home; thanks for having us over. Andy