Not long after we moved into our new home, we discovered fireflies like to hang out in our backyard at twilight. The sight brought back such good memories of our childhood we wanted to share the experience with our 5-year-old grandson Micah. So last weekend, we invited him to sleepover at Boss and Nana’s house. (Now that we live close, we can do that!)
First, we “had” to let him stay up way past his bedtime. Then we got to sit out back, watch the sunset, and wait for the lightning bugs to make their appearance.
Micah wore his pajamas and his rain boots for the firefly escapade. (When he arrived at our house that morning with the thick red rubber boots on his feet I didn’t give it a second thought. After all, it was raining at the time. Later, when we were getting ready to go out to dinner, we found out he didn’t have any other shoes with him. His mom let him pack all by himself.)
Rain boots may not be the best foot wear for the Ponder Steak House, but they happened to be perfect for running around a muddy backyard snagging glowing beetles between your two cupped hands. By the time the “catching” was finished, Micah had collected about a dozen fireflies in his bug house.
Micah wanted to take good care of them and knew they needed food and water to survive. After some quick research we learned more than we thought we needed to know about fireflies. Here’s the top things we found interesting:
- Fireflies are NOT flies, they are beetles.
- There are about 2,000 different varieties of fireflies.
- Fireflies eat bugs, like mosquitos, and nectar.
- The primary purpose of the fireflies’ light is to attract a mate.
- The firefly’s glow is a chemical reaction between two substances in the bug’s abdomen. The firefly itself triggers the reaction by regulating the flow of oxygen into it’s abdomen.
Our research triggered two actions. First, we filled a bottle cap with hummingbird food and placed it in the bug house so the fireflies wouldn’t starve before Micah released them at home the next day. (They actually drank it!)
Second, the firefly’s incredible design pointed us straight to the Designer. What a “glowing” example of God’s creativity and power. And He didn’t just create one kind of glowing beetle. He created 2,000! Isn’t our God amazing?!
What have you seen in the world lately that reminded you of the One who made it?!
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