Night Story

Tonight, it returned. On the summer air, the evening beckoned me to explore the night wind. My white cotton sheets gathered around me as I sat up to peek out of my curtains to the wonderland before me.  A shimmering full moon above the nearby forest made everything glow with an ethereal illumination. The air became thick with the anticipation of my participation in the awaiting world.

Slipping out of bed, I followed the dim glow of moonlight flooding my bedroom window. The moon hung high and full in the sky – plopped amidst a sea of silvery stars. They seemed to ripple in endless circles around it. My arms reached to lift the heavy wooden frame. My fingers slipped on it bringing peels of white crackling paint with them. My lavender nail polish chipped on the aged wood. Sighing and grasping firmer, I heaved the stubborn frame up until it came to a grinding halt.

A gust of cool breeze rushed in, encircling me in the center of the bedroom. Twirling at the center it, I raised my arms, tilted my head toward the ceiling and contentedly inhaled its sweet splendor. I was entranced, helpless at its beckoning.

A soft glimmer glided past the open window, followed by a sparkling parade of light. The trickling stream began to swirl in figure eights around my tiny, enchanted bedroom. The glimmering orbs quickly fell into the revolving current of air gently twisting around me. It was a fanfare of fireflies, and I was the delighted core. My milky white nightgown spun around me like a Victorian party dress in my clandestine dance. Then a whisper softly floated to my ear.

Photo by me, 2010. Please request permission before using.

“Come and stay with us,” a firefly quietly coaxed.

“Not tonight,” I returned.

On cue, the firefly parade floated to various places amidst the darkening room as though they were always there like white Christmas lights hiding beneath a freshly fallen snow. They led a path back to my lonely bed. Hovering along my window sill, headboard, shelves and ceiling, the creatures stayed, magically suspending themselves in air and time.

“I will though,” I promised, and soon, I did.