Summertime is full of delights, and it’s also full of chores. Returning home after a long voyage, the mountain of maintenance nearly overwhelmed me.

The invasive roses were soaring over my head. A lumpy brown creature had excavated a big pile of stones from under the porch. My sore knee was going click-clack with every step. Suffice to say, it was not a day of glorious one-ness with nature.

The sun set on my to-do list, without a single entry crossed off. And then, as a bright moon rose over the hill, I saw a glint in the brambles, the ones I had yet to clear. Then another. Then a full-blown spark, floating skyward. The fireflies had returned.

Friends, we will all have uphill days, with challenges far more daunting than yardwork.

May all of our brambles bring fireflies.