9:52 am / hello little firefly

For many Americans, the Fourth of July means cookouts, fireworks, and celebrating the supposed independence and freedom of their country. For me, the Fourth of July is just another holiday and I can't claim that I'm especially proud of America's state or that I feel free in any true sense right now. I don't tell many people that I seriously doubt the so-called freedom of America because I fear they will take me for an ungrateful brat who doesn't realize or appreciate that other countries are in terrible states of poverty, disease, and dictatorship. But, the truth is, I don't feel free at all. We are all trapped in various roles in our ever-declining economy. There is no way to escape the "importance" we put on money in order to survive, to have fun, to flourish in this country or any other country. When it comes down to it, money is extremely necessary to most people because people have made money a necessity. Except perhaps Aboriginal tribes? As silly as it sounds, I would much rather be part of an Aboriginal tribe sometimes (and, lately, a lot of the time), just as I would much rather be an animal or insect, which brings me to the subject of fireflies.

When I was younger, I reveled in catching fireflies. They were a significant part of my summer. I remember more than one Fourth of July where I caught fireflies too. Anyway, one of my newest songs is called "Hello Little Firefly" and, although its tune is lighthearted enough, it is about escape. Escape from the material things, escape from worry, escape from the fear of time passing, and of life running out. Here are the lyrics:

Hello little firefly

Can I hold you in my hand?

I promise I won't crush you

I just want to understand

How your tiny wings carry you so high                                  

Above the world, from blade of grass to sky

Without a noise, without 

a sound

You flash your patterned glow

Making friends and making love

Without a word you know

As antennae touch and bodies cling so tight

Onto the world, the summer air, the night

(Chorus)

And you don't need a watch to know the minutes, seconds, hours

A telephone is useless with your hands to small to dial

Oh, firefly, I wish that I could live as simply as you do

As simply as you do

As simply as you do

It's a short little song but I think it's pretty to the point. Although fireflies have a short lifespan compared to humans-- about 1-2 years as larvae and a few weeks as adults --they probably enjoy their lives as much as their brain capacities allow. I wouldn't trade my human brain capacity for a firefly's brain capacity but, as I wrote in the song, sometimes I wish my life could be so much simpler. No need for a watch, a phone, a computer, or even money. Just to live, live, L-I-V-E!!, as Maude says.