silent summer
The cicadas are at it again, in the sycamore and maple trees on the southeast side of our house. They start soft and slow, raising in pitch and then softening. Their music is like the waves at the seashore, a city man’s beach sounds. Tonight is the first I’ve heard them all summer, and summer is already over for us. School days have set in, and September is at the doorstep.
This summer was eerie in so many ways, but the worst bit was the silence. Sure, the crickets finally had a chance to be heard, after being drowned out by the hum of cicadas every summer. But where was that hum? More than once I wondered what was missing. Cicadas are summer, and without them it was just a really hot time without school. I’ve read that next year will be a big year, with Brood X emerging near us. Summer will really be summer then.
What is Brood X? We've been hearing the cicadas for a while... Found a few of their "shells" and a living cicada today on our walk to collect acorns. Slowly add a bit more intentional learning to our days, but with our younger 2 mostly learning through play.
ReplyDeletePeriodical cicadas are grouped into geographic broods based on the calendar year when they emerge. (I'm directly quoting Wiki) The brood nearest us, on the East coast, is Brood X. Usually our annual cicadas are more numerous, but not this year.
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