So much beauty....

...to take in all at once. Tonight while I'm taking out the trash at twilight, I catch a glimpse of the moon through the tall pines next door, glowing orange. Intrigued, I walk over to the garden and sit on the bench, just taking in the approaching night; in the waning daylight, even the neighbor's barn, with its missing shingles and random assortment of weeds and wheelbarrows, is beautiful. The air is still and cool, only a few browsing mosquitoes find me. I listen as the birds sing their end-of-the-day songs, suddenly all silent at once as if on cue. Their efforts give way to the endless drone of crickets, which nearly drowns out the endless drone of the traffic on the highway; tonight I hear it, but sometimes when the wind drifts the other way the nights are as silent as the grave. My bench overlooks the cow pasture, overgrown with grass and providing a perfect backdrop for the lightning bugs' display. A single calf wanders silently out of the barn, looking for the remains of dinner in his bowl. The moon has risen some since I've been sitting here, now full and bright, now nearly hidden by small clouds. I wonder if it's full, but I can't really tell behind the trees. I wish I could take a picture of it, silhouetting the pines in the last fading light; but I've tried that before, with unsatisfactory results. So I sit and appreciate the gift of this evening for long moments until it becomes apparent that the word has spread among the mosquitoes that dinner is served, and so I go back inside.