Imagine you and I are sitting on a black igneous hillside, looking down into a crater that holds hot swirling lava. We are on the big island of Hawaii at the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. We are watching Kilauea seeth and swim as she (the volcano) churns her molten insides. We can smell sulfur (kinda like rotten eggs) mingled with the soft alluring fragrance of hibiscus. The sun begins to set in the distance.
“That egg smell is starting to get to me, Prudence!” You say rising from the dark rock.
“Yeah, let’s go back to the bungalow,” I reply.
We carefully make our way down the steep and craigy rock. The green and lush forest we find ourselves in is cool and dark as the sun finishes its decent into the distant mountain top.
“What is this, Prudence? I’ve never seen this bug before,” You say mesmerized by the yellow and black insect that has handed on your hand. You cup it carefully, but quickly so I can see what you are referring to.
As I walk over, you open your hand and soft orange and yellow light fills the shallow opening you’ve created.
“That’s a firefly!” We look around and all at once, we realize that we are surrounded by thousands of fire flies. They are lighting up the sky all around us. It is as if they are helping us find our way back to our warm bungalow by the beach.
“Wow! They are everywhere, Prudy!” You say with wonder. What an amazing night. We have witnessed the fire deep with Mother Earth who grounds and nurtures us all. And we have seen the sky lit with magical fireflies. We stand there in awe. We feel such power rising up from deep inside of ourselves. We feel we can do ANYTHING on a night like this. The fire within us is unleashed!
“Let’s go to that Luau, Prudence!”
“I thought you were too nervous to try the hula dancing? You know, the natives insist we dance with them. It would be rude to go and not dance.
“I’ll dance, Prudence!” You exclaim. On a night like this, I’m not afraid of what anybody thinks or says. Besides, they are all strangers. I’ll never see them again. But even if I did, I want to twirl and dance tonight. I want to celebrate my power and just being alive.”
“I’ll get the grass skirts I bought in the village. You grab a couple pineapple juices from the fridge and I’ll meet you at the front door of the bungalow,” I proclaim.
“Sounds like a plan!” You say and we start to run to see who will make it to the house by the beach first. You pull ahead. I pull you back gently by your golden hair and we giggle as we continue on. What a night this is. So much strength and satisfaction between us. We are invincible, tonight.