Fireflies

I watch my friend become a shell

Of herself.  Her husband, once charmed

By her effervescence

Now finds her zest for life

inconvenient, unaligned

with how he imagined his wife.

I tell her fireflies do not thrive

In captivity, deprived of air,

companions, and light 

I observe as she plots

her escape,

takes the leap, maps

her way back

to the wild.

She is one of thousands

migrating home,

Free to dance among her sisters,

Out of reach from hunters

who have yet to learn

You cannot bottle lightning.

Danielle Coffyn (she/her) is a Pushcart-Prize winning poet.  She is co-founder of the Superblom Society, where she facilitates Nature and Nurture hiking and writing retreats. 

She currently resides in St. Louis with her son and dog.

You can read her essays exploring the complexity of being human on her Substack,

The Understory. 

Daniellecoffyn.substack.com

Instagram:  @daniellecoffynBluesky:  @daniellecoffyn.bsky.social