It has finally gotten warm enough to be able to have the windows open again.  It has been an incredibly refreshing last couple of days, clearing out all the stuffiness of winter.  It is for this reason that spring and fall are my two favorite seasons.  It has even been nice enough to get to sleep with the windows open.  It always takes me a bit to get used to the sounds of the night again after a long winter of being sealed off from the outside. 

I remember when I was a kid, laying in the middle of my bed at night with the window open and a cool breeze being pulled in by the attic fan.  Most nights I would lie there awake just listening to the sounds of all the insects calling to each other and watching the lightening bugs dancing against the background of trees across the street from my house.  The peace that comes with moments like that tends to last for a long time after. 

I am thrilled to know that the wonderfully open area around our house, that is so similar to the area I grew up in, will not be developed for a few years more.  I loved the fact that I grew up on a street with lots of houses, my friends living just a few away, all the while being just a short walk away from being able to get lost in the quiet of the woods.  We do not have quite the same set up where we are now, but it is close enough to satisfy the desire to be close to that kind of peace.  It is close enough that I still get to see the graceful dance of the lightening bugs against a backdrop of trees and hear the song of the insects.