Array of Quiet Fireflies

Independence Day, 2020.  I’m not usually in the United States for this particular holiday. Generally I’d been en route back to New York from Beijing, navigating a sojourn with the family in some remarkable place somewhere between here and there. That ain't happening this year. 

I suggested to my dad and stepmom that they come on over and I’d make some lunch.  They said something about a clambake at their joint but eventually agreed to swing by around three.  My mom would pay my stepdad a visit and join us as well.  I kept thinking that if my father called and said: “What can I bring?” as he generally does, to which I generally reply, “Nothing.  Come hungry,” I would perhaps tell him “Get some fireworks.”  Just the other day, riding out on Route 44 from Poughkeepsie I saw a roadside stand selling fireworks. I’d caught the memo that pot was legal now in a smattering of states, but when did they legalize fireworks?  That would be the kind of assignment he would have (with a bit of warning) enjoyed. 

Ah, but pop didn’t call, and he didn’t come hungry.  I think I got him to make room amidst the bivalves he’d ingested for a single hot dog.  The burgers came out alright.  The veggie burgers needed more coagulation though.  I’d say only two of the six I made were really looking like proper paddies you could put on a bun.  There’s only one vegetarian anyway so two of them would be plenty.  My wife became fiendishly interested in the sour kraut and the horse radish as they taste just like pao cai and jiemo.

That night around sundown my wife decided she wanted to see fireworks.  I pointed out to her that it might be hard to find a descent view with little to no preparation.  Indeed, just look out the back yard, there, up and over the Gunks, someone is hosting a fireworks show that we can see from our own porch.  But she was set on an upgrade and the girls went with her, so I sat out on the porch and watched for a while.  It was rather far away, and it was over before it started but I enjoyed it while it lasted.  Later, nature upgraded the event with an astounding array of quiet fireflies who signaled to each other by the hundreds, down below me in the yard.

Saturday, 7/04/20