The Dance of the Fireflies

After many attempts this was the closest to capturing the fireflies on camera tonight.

You should've seen them! I would like to say there were thousands out tonight! Starting with the drive home after this long week, but the weeks seem longer nowadays for some reason.

They were like guiding me home, the drive that has been the same drive home for the past five years, only tonight they were out in full force. Like saying, "This way...lets play when you get home! We'll show you the way!"

They seem to know their home is offset from the house, out in the peace near ponds and away from the highway and house and dogs and cats. Playfully dancing to the music of crickets and bullfrogs and the nighttime birds. The warm, damp weather along with the weather settling down now ("It's safe to come out guys! The wind has stopped so lets party!")

It's like they made their own bonfire out of themselves out in the woods. Dancing, flying, swirling, scattering light in the most amazing episode of light display, showing off talents of creativity only a tribe of beings in the wild can produce. To be a spectator of the show was an honor tonight. To be included and even have the most curious of them barely creep close, for a glimpse of ME! While I tried so hard to record a glimpse of THEM to show the world! One picture out of all of them barely brushed the scene I saw tonight. It will have to do.

My own vision of the scene, even though it was so much more detailed than yours, doesn't do justice to the incredible display of light interacting with light. I couldn't see the process of interaction that was made between one light and another, and another, and another... The lights dancing over their own reflections on the ponds, trading partners to continue the dance until the right one came along...

Bullfrogs singing a baritone sound while crickets and whipporwils sing the high notes. The dance will continue until sunrise for sure. What a party! I would sleep in the hammock on the patio and listen to it all night if I weren't so tired.

It was enough to watch fireflies dance on a Saturday night to the best music of all!

I'm sure owls are watching from a distance.

G'night all! Hope there's lots of sweet dreams involved!

Sandy

Tornado Video

Hopefully this will work. All week has been bad but Monday was the worst for tornadoes. 37 officially counted right now and 2 deaths.

Amber was at home thankfully and got into the storm cellar with some friends when she heard the tornado sirens go off. No damage here though. I was at work when the tornado sirens went off and we immediately locked the doors and sent employees and customers to the back hallway (our "safe zone"). The managers stayed at the front and I heard later the vaccum from the wind was straining the doors in, then out, with only the locks holding them closed. It must have been right over us just not dropped down.

For hours one would pass by then we'd hear of another on the ground headed for us again. We were literally surrounded by them. Power kept flickering on and off and we had people lined up in the hallway that stayed for quite a while waiting it out. One couple stopped in from traveling down I40 and her mutantly giant cat got loose in the store! They eventually got it though.

After we reopened people began pouring in. Customer after customer saying their house had been taken out by a tornado, or their roofs ripped off scrambling to get plywood and tarps before the next storm hit. One guys' car windows were shattered from baseball size hail (yes, it really does get that big! My car has pit marks from golf ball size hail!) That night we just left the doors open until people stopped coming in. We didn't turn anyone away.

Being in retail it's become such a natural greeting while ringing up customers to say, "Hi! How're you doing?" (with a perky little smile) I've really got to change that. When a tired mom, buying batteries and flashlights, with all the kids since the schools don't have power, they haven't had water or electricity, even worse, lost their house... well, they look they give back says it all. So many people have been affected by this. Nerves are shot.

Yesterday there were still over 14,000 homes without power. Our store sold over 400 generators by mid afternoon. And on top of that, the local Walmart lost their power that Monday. The contractor that came to hook up the generator for them did it wrong and COMPLETELY fried the entire stores' electrical system! I heard it would be another two weeks before they could reopen but when I drove past today it looked like the doors were open but the building was dark.

A girl at work heard the sirens go off so she grabbed the cat and went into her storm cellar. Her neighbors came right after her, they door was sucked open, he shoved his wife in and had a hard time closing the door behind them then as soon as it was closed the tornado hit. Her two story house is now a one story pile of rubble. But at least they are all safe.

I just can't believe how scared people are out here of earthquakes but tornadoes are no problem because "at least you can get underground away from them." Then there's Haiti. And the earthquake in San Francisco years ago that flattened the upper deck of the freeway onto the lower deck, trapping people in a tomb for miles. Let's face it, in nature...shit happens. All you can do is survive and pick up the person next to you and keep going.

One step at a time...

Andi in Haiti

My friend Tracy has kids the same age as mine and they all went to school together in Angels Camp. Her daughter went to Haiti to help with the clean up with a group a couple of weeks ago. She has sent some amazing pictures out. It's unbelievable the rubble those people are living in. Shanty towns and whatever shelters the people can put together are everywhere.

It may be hard for her to be there right now but the impact it's going to have on her life will last forever.

I'm so proud of her!

Sights, sounds and smells of Spring

The days have most definitely changed to predominantly Spring like weather, with more days than not being warmer, brighter and sunnier than most.

There's a hopefulness in the air, long dormant after the stifling relentless cold of winter. Waking up after the hibernation of the soul is refreshing. It seemed slow and subtle then all of a sudden you realize the new beginnings have arrived while you've been sleeping, creeping up on you while you were busy dreaming. Like it or not the world seemed to change during the dormancy.

New life seemed to spring up out of nowhere. Kittens born, birds migrated, flowers bloomed all while you were sleeping, wrapped up in your own little world. Chickens begin laying eggs now that it's warm enough, grass and plants grow like they've saved all their energy throughout the winter just to let loose at this moment to overwhelm a person in the healing color of green and every color the first flowers can put forth. And all with no struggle at all, their energy bursting through just to cheer you on! There's no need to give up when nature has this recharging system of boosting your life back to living..again.

It's refreshing to know the built in anti-depressants of nature are working on cue..just for you. As if you are the only spectator in this grand display, and they produce it willingly, eagerly only to coax you out of your shell to let you know that, yes, life goes on and it's more brilliant than the year before.

Yes...this will be a wonderful year. It always is but it's easy to forget with the stagnancy of sitting out the long winter, holed up...waiting for better things.

Better things are there if only the eyes and senses open up to the slap in the face nature brings this time of year. They're like saying, "Hellloooo!!!! It's been awesome all along! Where have you been?!"

Today at lunch I saw an eagle flying so high it was almost lost in the clouds. The breeze was enough down below but it soared higher than that, on a level of atmosphere that it was more comfortable with, and quite masterfully I might add. It was a beautiful sight and the thought of what it was thinking about the view so far below was a very thought provoking experience. It must've felt quite a separateness from the world but at the same time a oneness. Distance is superficial when one is an eagle. It's all a matter of tilting the wings a certain way and there it would be to meet up with the world below, if it so chose.

It was a warm day today and then it rained this evening, leaving a foggy mist floating off of the pavement. Fireworks were going off at the University because of a big track meet in Shawnee. No shooting stars but I looked, of course.

The kids are settling into their new home next door, Cassie will be coming home soon. Randall is in a new beginning time and we have yet to see when he comes back home.

Sharon, the momma kitty has move her kittens to the tractor shed, keeping them safer in her mind at least. Bambi moo's at the fence when she see's me, calling for some attention. She's got plenty of pasture to graze on but I imagine the loneliness of having it all to herself can be a bit lonely at times. We do what we can for her.

Tomorrow is another day at work then off Monday and Tuesday. I'm feeling amazingly better now, and after another birthday to reflect on where I'm at at this moment in life am feeling the refreshing renewal of spring giving me strength to keep moving. The garden promises new growth as well as accepting change and dealing with it all.

It might take a little nurturing at times though.

Baby steps...

to get to the big girl steps...

:)