DRAGONFLIES
Many years ago - as an au pair in France – I would stand mesmerized as my toddler charge, finger in the air, screamed: “Libellule! Libellule!” My five years of high school French notwithstanding, I was baffled. Belle = beautiful: beautiful what? A few hours later, my well-worn dictionary told all: it was a DRAGONFLY. I had gone my whole short life without a sighting!! At the time, I was more focused on how a 2-year old could pronounce the “ule” so perfectly whereas I, the 17 year-old Irish girl had to practice it repeatedly without choking. Goes to show how much easier it is to learn when one is young and unselfconscious. But I digress!
Nowadays, I skulk around my yard and beaches many thousands of miles away from France looking for the elusive Libellule. Like that little French boy, I utter a scream – silent of course – at the sight of those gleaming wings on a stick.
Here in Southwest Florida, the air is sometimes thick with darting dragonflies. We are very grateful to them for devouring the pesky mosquitoes that invade our space at every drop of rain. Like the super fast butterflies, they are not easy to photograph, so I chase them around until they land. Are they delightful or what?
P.S. I’m still trying to capture the azure blue Libelule. Soon, soon!