Fireflies, Everywhere Fireflies

Happy (belated) Fourth of July, Reader!

In honor of the day, here's a quote from a recent address by President Obama that made me nod my head and go, "yes."

"In all that we do, we must remember that what sets America apart is not solely our power -- it is the principles upon which our union was founded...We protect our own freedom and prosperity by extending it to others. We stand not for empire, but for self-determination."

** Here Endeth The Serious**

I hope you celebrated the day accordingly. My day started with walking to the local bakery and bagel place for some iced coffee. I know the woman whose family owns the store and they were closing in a few minutes so she sent us home with a TON of donuts! I do not let myself eat donuts. They fall under the list of Things I Never Eat Because They Taste Good. But I figured, on a holiday, I could enjoy myself. Let me emphasize that these were HOMEMADE donuts. Possibly my first ever. Starting the day with iced coffee and a donut was fantastic and decadent.

(Cue incredible blood sugar spike headache a few minutes later. Ahh but it was worth it.)

I made my mom's gelatin salad (which no one has ever not liked), since my parents were in Connecticut. We went to a barbecue at our friends' house. They live outside of town, with two fields on either side and woods behind them. At twilight, we were sitting on their screened-in porch, watching the fireflies come out.

It was a magical moment. Not only that, it was a moment straight out of the end of my novel (minus the fae retinue) but I was a polite writer and did not burden the conversation with this meaningless information.

Mist started to spill onto the field from a break in the woods. A coyote trotted out with it. We could barely see her in the half light. She kept looking at us over her shoulder. In the bushes and trees, the fireflies winked and danced. The trees grew darker, the mist thicker, the crescent moon brighter. Everything held its breath.

"The coyote wants us to follow it," I said.

Thankfully, no one said anything in response or tried to point out that it was more likely that the coyote was making sure it was safe before leading her pups out of the trees and across the field.

Besides, who is to say she wasn't attempting to do both?

I did not see any fireworks this year, but mist and magic and fireflies were, I think, even better.