It has been quite hot here for the past several days. That is par for the course, but it has also been much more humid than is usual for this time of year. This afternoon, a breeze kicked up and blew some of that moist air out of here. It is still quite warm, don't get me wrong. It's just not as sticky anymore. Whew!
It is lovely outside tonight, clear and starry. I saw a shooting star a few minutes ago. I also saw a young (ten to twelve-ish) boy out for a bike ride (in the dark, all alone), and several fireflies blinking their patterns in the sky. All of these things remind me of some of the many attributes of Ocracoke which I love.
First, I adore the low amount of ambient light, which makes it possible to see more stars from here than most other places (Even within the village, it is easier to see stars than in your average American town...but out on the beach at night is when you can truly be reminded of how many heavenly bodies there are surrounding us. On most nights, the Milky Way is clearly, easily visible.
When stars disappeared behind streetlights,
he said I've gotta get out of this place,
Gotta watch the Milky Way crossing the sky
like freckles on my litte girl's face.
~ from The Richest Man in the World, my current favorite Coyote song
I also appreciate the safety of a small community, which makes it possible for young boys to ride their bikes alone after dark. And for a mid-thirties woman to have a nurturing "adult childhood". (That's what the fireflies were about - seeing them always makes me feel childlike. My own childhood was not particularly safe or filled with firefly magic...so I'm having an adult childhood now, which is both. But that's a whole essay in itself, one which is still forming in my heart and mind, but which I will definitely write some day.)
In the meantime, I'm enjoying the cooler weather, the stars, the fireflies, and the safety. I hope that you, too, are in a place of nurturing, healing, and magic.
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