The view out my front door is ever-changing.  A developer has torn out a high school that used to be there to put in apartment buildings, offices, and townhouses over the next several years.  Presently, a mountain chain of excavated dirt stares me in the face.  On its right lies a lovely new bike and pedestrian path that, once open, will provide a shortcut to a major street, a park, and our groceries.

On its left is a patch of overgrown weeds- some taller than me at this point- and the one tree they spared when demolishing the school.  It used to be a lot greener and shadier over here, which is a shame, but we’ve been assured this will be a green space after construction.

Fortunately, fireflies still like to congregate here.  (However, they don’t like posing for my camera.)

As a kid with allergies, afraid of most insects, fireflies were one of my few connections with Nature.  The bugs are friendly and fascinating, their annual visit all too brief.

Now that I’m my own boss, I work (write) in two shifts: from breakfast to lunch, then after dinner until bed.  During my evening shift, I take a break around 9 PM to step out and visit with the fireflies.  It’s good to get away from the computer and talk out loud to myself about difficult parts of my rewrites.  (I’m sure my neighbors think I’m nuts.)

Mostly though, I watch for the little glowing tails of light, wishing they could last all year.  I catch a few bugs in my hands, but let them fly away at their leisure- no more jars with holes poked in the top.  Visitors happen by sometimes, like the lady who walks her German shepherd around the same time of day- and this little guy, who makes me wish I’d remembered my digital camera rather than my spouse’s old smartphone.

See him?

How about now?

I look forward to my firefly break all day long.  :)

Do you have a favorite time of day/break ritual?  Let me know in the comments!