Fireflies

The lessons of life are hard sometimes, at least as hard as we allow them to be. We grow up with all the trust in the world, we believe in pixie dust, we have stars in our eyes and we all believe that fire flies light the world. Yet, sooner or later, we all have to go thru the life lesson of discovering, that the world is not all rainbows and fairytales. The discovery, that it is sometimes cold, dark and gray and at times, the absolute epitome of evil. It is also, sunshine, flowers blooming, ocean waves crashing on the shore and the love of family and friends enveloping you and making you warm and safe inside. It is deep and undying loss and heartache griping at your heart and your soul so much that you can’t breathe, your legs buckle from under you and at times you think that you will never shake the feeling “ if only, it would end you would be better off”. Then it is followed by long walks on the beach, holding hands, experiencing your first kiss, the butterflies in your stomach when you realize you have fallen in love for the first time. The disappointment of expectations not being lived up to, whether they be your own or someone else’s. It is the fall leaves changing colors and streams rushing over rocks and your children coming into your life, making everything perfect as long as they are in your sight. It is experiencing deceit and distrustful behavior from someone you love so much. It comes so out of the blue that you are truly caught off guard to the point you feel you will never stand straight again. Here comes the childlike wonder in your kid’s eyes as they see something beautiful and wondrous for the first time…the excitement is so contagious that they transport you back in your mind to the first time you experienced it as well. Life is full of steps and stumbles, we fall down and we get up. We cry and we laugh, we frown and we smile. The journey has no set path and it has no set end. We decide as we go. It is the journey that makes us who we are, it is the experiences whether good or bad that make us the person we become. We must celebrate life in all of its trials and tribulations for without them who would we be? The positive things will always outweigh the negative, if only we can find it within ourselves to look one more time with childlike wonder, sprinkle just a few things with pixie dust, and use fire flies to light our way home.

Reviews

[barleygirl]

I like the way you decided to write this with observations alternating between good & not-so-good. You've expressed your experiences, which perhaps resonate with many others in similar situations. Frankly, I'm not a fan of using clichés like "pixie dust" . . . "stars in our eyes" . . . "rainbows & fairytales . . . "sunshine & flowers blooming." This piece would be much more original if you could use specific details from your own life experiences instead of such bland over-used generalities. In this area of your piece (following quote), you are more specific, so it comes across with more vivid, visual recognition: "the childlike wonder in your kid’s eyes as they see something beautiful and wondrous for the first time" . . .

Altho this is a well-intentioned message written in well-structured, well-organized solid writing, I would love to see more of this type of personal observations (as in quoted line above).

[Joy Carver]

Thank you for the observations and constructive criticism. I will work on adding more of my own life experiences specifically in the future.

[Cyprian Van Dyke]

Nice story. It reminded me of what wise king Solomon said, "there's a time for everything." Your story was beautiful and full of meaning! I enjoyed reading it a lot!

[Joy Carver]

Thank you, Cyprian. I am so glad that you enjoyed it.

[Cyprian Van Dyke]

Most welcome, Joy!

[Papaya]

Hi Joy,
I like the way you've described the ups and downs in life and how they shape who we are, who we will be and that even the bad times teach us something. Enjoyed this!

[Joy Carver]

Thank you very much for taking the time to read some of my work!

[Papaya]

You're welcome. :)

[Samuel Dickens]

It's true, all true, and you tell it as one who has lived it. Especially, I like the way you ended this, sprinkling that dust once again. The old, jaded grownup in me needs to be frequently nudged aside by some youthful optimism.

[Joy Carver]

Thank you and I couldn't agree more with a much needed nudge given from time to time.