Dragonflies

the dragonfly
can’t quite land
on that blade of grass.

Basho

A few years ago we attended a naturalist course on dragonflies. One of the attendees wore a dragonfly shirt, carried a notebook with a dragonfly outline on the cover, and dragonfly ear rings dangled from her ears. She and several other attendees spoke enthusiastically about how they loved dragonflies. Though smaller in number, they seemed more enthusiastic than avid birders we know seem about birds. In folklore, dragonflies represent change, joy, and adaptability. They appear often in poetry, especially Haiku.

While boating in the Okefenokee Swamp a few years ago, we sat still and quiet in the boat, listening and looking at the flora and fauna around us. As we sat, several dragonflies landed on us, happy to use us as a temporary resting place. They added to the serenity of the experience.

This time of year in particular, we see them in our backyard and darting over the trees lining the creek. I enjoy them too and cannot resist stopping to photograph them whenever we hike.