I’ve been sending my thoughts out into the universe now through my blog posts for years. Most days I feel like I’m talking to myself, but I continue because I enjoy writing, I enjoy photography and I enjoy learning new things about nature, which my posts often force me to do. It’s also true that I hope something I say will make a difference in a positive way, and that like a rock thrown into a pond, the ripple may spread. Through the years I’ve gotten some feedback from you, my readers, and know some of you are listening. (Thank you!)
I’ve written many posts about a special firefly called a Blue Ghost. For anyone who’s witnessed a display of this tiny insect, the most accurate word to describe it is magical. When you’re standing in a silent and pitch dark forest, surrounded by moving light trails just a few feet off of the ground, it’s hard to use any other word. Watching the Blue Ghosts every spring is truly something that feeds my soul and fills me with joy that is difficult to explain to someone who’s never seen it and who doesn’t have a deep connection to the natural world.
As many of you know, my husband and I have Blue Ghosts on our property, a fact that we discovered years ago because we were outside after dark, in the middle of May. We saw their tiny lights, moving through the darkness as if ghosts were carrying lanterns through the woods. Blue Ghosts require very specific conditions, not common everywhere that other fireflies are found. Once we discovered this firefly here, we wanted to share it with everyone we knew, every spring. We hosted an annual Blue Ghost Viewing party, even inviting people we’d never actually met in person. Something this amazing we thought had to be shared! We wrongly assumed that since we owned the property and had them here, we would always have them here. I say wrongly because what I never imagined was that the actions of our neighbors could jeopardize the population of fireflies on our property.
A man, and Holocaust survivor by the name of Elie Wisel once said that “The opposite of love is not hatred but indifference.” He was referring to this with respect to people, wanting the world never to allow genocide again but ever since I first saw this quote, I associate it with nature. People who don’t have a connection with the natural world, or who don’t really know anything about what goes on outside of their doors, will be indifferent about what happens. It’s not that they hate nature, it’s just that they don’t know all the joys and wonders of it.
My love of nature defines me as I think it does many of you reading now. Like me you probably feel deeply moved when you witness a mama bear with her newborn cubs or when you watch a butterfly emerging from its chrysalis. Watching Blue Ghosts on a dark night is one of those experiences that moves me to tears, making me feel reverence as I imagine people feel when they walk into a cathedral. Like many of you, my church is nature and I could not do without it any more than I could do without food or water. It truly is Nature For My Soul. Easy to see how this website got its name.
Since last spring when I watched the Blue Ghosts with only my husband, not sharing it with friends as is our tradition because of Covid, our neighbors installed a 30 foot-high street-lamp type light at the edge of their property that stays on from dawn to dusk. That along with several other flood lights–also on all night– on their house that shine in our direction, have effectively erased our darkness, and the darkness required of “our” Blue Ghost fireflies. Because Blue Ghosts are so tiny–only the size of a grain of rice–and because the females are wingless and can’t fly, the insects cannot simply fly off to a new place that IS dark. And for them darkness isn’t optional, it’s essential. Males have little chance of finding females if there is other light in their habitat. How can a male find a female when he moves towards the artificial light? When his light trail can’t be seen by waiting females? How can a female make herself seen when she can’t even fly to escape the light, when her tiny light is the in the middle of a bright swath of artificial light? They will never find each other, and she cannot lay eggs to ensure future generations of Blue Ghost fireflies.
So with the action of two people who are indifferent about nature–who have never seen the firefly display and who are unwilling to make the effort to do so, our darkness has been stolen. And the fireflies are in jeopardy. Of course we tried to work with our neighbors to turn off the lights. We wrote a letter and spoke on the phone, pleading on behalf of the voiceless Blue Ghosts to turn the lights off for the three weeks in the year that the fireflies are active. We were unsuccessful. They refuse to work with us to protect the fireflies they’ve never seen.
I tell you this story to highlight the importance of sharing nature with EVERYONE you know so that people will have a relationship with the natural world. We can’t hoard the parts of it we like–the amazing waterfall or the grove of lady’s slippers, the forest where the Blue Ghosts work their magic, wanting to keep it to ourselves. We must share it so that others experience it too, confident that there can be a balance between loving it and loving it to death. It is better that people want to hike or travel to see special places and things rather than stay home. Our neighbors are a perfect example of this. Of course they will not care if something is lost if they never saw the magic of it in the first place. If they’ve never watched the silent symphony of hundreds of fireflies in the night, there is no way it will matter to them if it suddenly and silently disappears.
This isn’t the end of the story for our Blue Ghosts as I am too passionate about their fate to just sit back and do nothing, silently standing by while our population of fireflies die off because they cannot find mates and reproduce. If you have ideas for us, I’d love to hear from you. Our best idea so far is hanging rope between trees at the edge of our property and from that hanging plastic tarps to block out some of the light. I went out last night to see if it made a difference and can say it did, but sadly, I don’t think it’s enough as there were still wide swaths of light that covered the ground where the Blue Ghosts historically have been seen. It was hard for me not to be blinded by the light shining out from above the top of the tarp–I’m sure it’s the same for the tiny insects. Today we will hang more sheets and tonight we will look again and see if what we’ve tried to do has made a difference.
Please help me spread the ripple by loving nature and sharing it so that others may love it too. Mother Nature needs as many of us as she can get and every person CAN make a difference, however small. In my opinion, it’ll always be worth trying.
Just wanted you to know that even though I don’t always respond I do read and enjoy your posts. Thank you!!!!
Oh, thanks, Colleen. It’s good to know. Have a great weekend! Big hugs from me.
This is heartbreaking to hear. We were so grateful to be invited to share the wonder of the Blue Ghosts on your property at one of your early viewing partys. It is a treasured memory. I will forward your post. Thank you for giving so much of yourself. You do make a difference.
Thank you, Leslie, it means a lot to me. I’m glad it was such a positive and memorable experience! I remember that the blue ghost display at that party wasn’t the greatest, though of course it’s all relative. We have learned so much since then! Especially that the fireflies are more active earlier in May. I do hope we can share it with people again in the future. Thanks for taking time to write. Have a great weekend!
Barb, thanks for your kind words. It makes me happy to know there are others out there who love nature as much as me. I know you’ll all help me spread the word.
Sharon, I always read your emails and greatly admire your photography and your writing. Like you, my church is nature. I’m sorry about your firefly plight.
This makes me so very sad, Sharon.
Carol, yes it is sad to be so powerless. There is little we can do. People fail to understand how much their behavior can affect others. We loved our darkness! Not just because of the blue ghosts, but also to see the stars and just to sit in quiet dark and enjoy the peace unique to night. Anyway, thanks for reading.
I almost cried when I read your post. Well said! Hopefully we can save them with our ugly tarps and we’ll plant Thujas in the fall and wait fir them to rise up and protect the little fairies.
It’s what I was doing when I should have been sleeping. Thanks for the feedback, and especially for always reading my posts. Let’s do this! Hello darkness my old friend…
Sharon I am stunned to read this. I can imagine the peaceful and informative intention you put forth with your neighbors; only to be met with horrific indifference. I’m devastated for you and Joe.
I’ve seen your genuine and caring/passionate enthusiasm for nature and blue ghosts…..
Thanks, Colleen… I appreciate your kind words. I wish everyone were as sweet and nice as you!
Sad to hear of this predicament. So unneighborly, especially refusing to turn the lights off for that short but important period of time. I’ll assume these folks don’t indulge in star gazing. So much is lost when we are void of a Nature connection.
I will thank you for having me attend one of your Blue Ghost gatherings. It was a very, very special evening!
May you find a reasonable solution🙏
Thanks Arden. I think we might be able to make the plastic tarps work. We are adding more today, above the height of the street light, creating a wall of plastic that we hope will take our yard back to darkness. I’m glad you enjoyed the party years ago— let’s hope we can do it again. Thanks for reading. May your Sunday be wonderful!
Oh Sharon, I am so saddened to read about this. I am sure you were very kind in your outreach to try to convince your neighbors to douse the lights. I wish they were reading your blog and being amazed by your stunning photos so they can get to know all the wonders that can be seen in your corner of the world. I hope the tarps will help – I think that was a creative idea to address the issue. Good luck!
Thanks Lisa. We’ll see what happens. Tonight will be the big test. We hired a professional tree crew today to hang high tarps. I am hopeful.
This makes me so sad, then angry, then sad that you have neighbors that cannot appreciate nature.. I hope your
tarps will work
Nanci! Me too, with the anger and sadness. Our solution is hardly permanent or long term. We tried so hard to work with them for some kind of compromise. It’s very disappointing to realize you can love something so much and think you’ll have it forever since it’s on your own property, but actually, someone else can take it from you with no regrets or concerns…. on another note, have you ever seen the blue ghosts? If not you should plan a visit for next year. We’d love to have you.