Feeling like a 5-year-old

I grew up in Colorado. It's a wonderful place, and I love it! But now I live in Virginia, which has its own charms. I'm spending my first summer in the south and discovering all kinds of interesting things. For example, every few weeks, a new flower or tree will bloom and fill my neighborhood with a new scent. First it was the wysteria, then honeysuckle, then lilacs, then roses, and now magnolias. Oh, the magnolias are amazing. Spicy and sweet and seductive.

We also have lightning bugs here! There are no lightning bugs in Colorado that I know of, so I've only seen them a few times in my life. The past few evenings I've seen some flitting through the air and every time they light up my heart just leaps! I feel like a little kid! They are so magical and amazing to me! My friends laugh (kindly) at me to see my childlike excitement over these creatures. Most of my pals here grew up in this area, so they are used to the flashing green lights in the humid night air. But not me. To me they are mysterious and new.

I love moments like that. Moments that fill you with a simple kind of wonder and make your heart skip a beat at the sheer beauty of the world. Moments like that might just sustain me through this crazy heat and humidity.