Wednesday, May 21, 2008

the light of a firefly

shari & tom

i visited
chapel hill
2 weeks back.

i was able
to see
shari and tom
one last time
before
they both
left to vermont.

i will miss
having her
live
so close.

shari

but i hope
to visit them
in vermont
this fall...

i was in n.c.
getting
a new tattoo...
to mark a
milestone
in my research.
a moth
on my upper back.

moth tattoo

Hypagyrtis unipunctata
the one-spotted variant
(that's an older
butterfly tattoo
below the moth)

. . . . .

has there
ever been
a time
in your life
that you remember
to be particularly
special...?
as if you
were at
just
the right place
at
just
the right time?

it was 2001.
an evening
in june
at the co-op house
that i
had just moved into,
{the house of 5},
i walked
into
my new room
at dusk
and
there,
hanging from
the ceiling lamp,
was a jar
that
my new housemates
had fashioned out
of an old mason jar
and wire,
and filled
with fireflies
to welcome me
to my new home.


photo by khara koffel.


i knew i was
right where
i needed to be.

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

Even though I'm generally not a fan of tats, I love yours- moths are definitely underrated! (compared to butterflies). When I was little I was obsessed with insects. I wanted to be an etymologist so badly. Though I never ended up doing that, my passion for animals (especially the tiny ones) has stayed with me. I love your blog :-) Keep it up!

Cindy said...

your story about the fireflies just gave me chills - so very nice. what did you do with them?

Anonymous said...

oh, i had forgotten about the fireflies! i remember that i was a little disappointed that because it was dark in your room, they stopped blinking much, so the effect wasn't quite what we had in mind. i'm glad to hear that it made an impression nonetheless!

jenifer lake said...

great image of the fireflies. we don't have them out here and i miss them so much. they were such a part of my southeast summers.

lisa solomon said...

love love that top shot of shari and T....

i also love the firefly story. i hope you have that feeling now - or will soon.... xo

Carson said...

Beautiful evocation of time & place.
I don't think we have fireflies in Australia.

shari said...

lightning bugs are just the best. had so much fun visiting with you while you were here. today as i left the beach with sandy flip flops, i caught a whiff of that salt water + coppertone smell and all of a sudden i was in north myrtle beach reliving all of my childhood summers. yes. i love it when seeing or smelling something brings you right back to that moment. xox

robin ann mcintosh said...

fireflies and a summer night occupy my special memory.

beautiful post, as always.

f. pea said...

i can't imagine summer without fireflies. one summer we will have to go see the blue ghosts. great picture of s&t - i always think of locopops when i think of them! it was wonderful having you here - come back soon!

Anonymous said...

What a beautiful story about the fireflies. Lovely photo of T and S too. xo lj

poetmama said...

Fireflies mean the world to me. Living in CA, I miss them so much. Lovely story. I enjoy your blog and think it's beautiful. Great photos too!

johnny said...

what a great story....(would you believe i only just saw my first real cluster of fire flies when I moved here last spring..?)

Anonymous said...

I love the firefly story, and your moth tattoo (so beautiful)! Yes, shari is adorable :)