Many of you have asked about the Red Dragonfly story I shared with you earlier. Yes, he is still visiting daily for the past six or seven weeks now, except on the days when it is foggy. He likes to come out when the sun is warmest, because that’s when the bugs he eats emerge. I have learned so much about dragonflies by watching his behavior. He is a male, as the females are not as bright red. And he bravely defends his territory, chasing other males out of his jurisdiction. I have not had the opportunity to pet him since the time I took the video Red Dragonfly Loves Music, as he seems to be more on the move these days, hunting bugs and rarely sitting. But he still visits daily and likes to dive bomb me, sometimes hovering in front of my nose or landing on my finger. And he still loves music, though he visits whether or not music is playing. I look forward to my visit with him each day. I’ve learned to pause and observe these precious moments.
For two sunny days this past week, however, Red Dragonfly did not show. I was so sad, thinking his lifespan had run its course. So on the third day, I sat in meditation and asked him to visit me, whether he was still in his dragonfly form or some other form. And within 15 minutes, he swooped just two inches in front of my eyes, flew around me once or twice, and then dashed over the fence. I think his hunting ground has changed, but he’s still stopping in each day now to say hello.
But I have an even more spectacular second chapter to this story. My Mom lives in Texas, and in our 40 years in Texas, we never once saw a red dragonfly. There are blue ones and brown ones, and petite blue-green damselflies galore. Mom deals with a number of chronic health issues and was one day feeling down about her continual struggle to feel good. So she sat in meditation and proclaimed to the universe that she was so tired of her BROKEN body. She asked for a sign–some reassurance–that she would again one day be able to not only walk or run with ease, but to FLY. Within the next fifteen minutes, she walked out to the mailbox, and when she came back to her doorstep, something that looked like a red leaf was on her door mat. In fact, she thinks she stepped on part of it. She bent down for a closer look and–you guessed it–it was a Red Dragonfly! It had only three wings and it looked to be hobbling–a BROKEN body. She wasn’t sure if she injured him or if he was just limping along because it was missing a wing. So she picked him up gently on a paper towel, so as not to hurt him, and placed him in the outstretched hands of a statue of St. Francis (the patron saint of animals) that she keeps by her front door. She begged St. Francis to help this little creature. Crying, she could barely stand to watch, so she went inside and peered through the window. And soon after, the dragonfly fluttered its wings, and fluttered a bit more and a bit more. And then she watched it FLY straight up and away, never to be seen again.
Now, you tell me that all the energy of the universe is not interconnected. Not only did this sign appear to reassure my Mom, but it appeared in the form of a Red Dragonfly–just like this marvelous creature who’s become my friend.
I remain…simply amazed.
