Island Light: Quiet Wonder
Pedestrian parade past Healey Square in Oak Bluffs.
Pedestrian parade past Healey Square in Oak Bluffs.
Butterfly alights on Joe Pye weed.
Butterfly alights on Joe Pye weed.
Bangs shuck shack on the shore of the Lagoon.
Bangs shuck shack on the shore of the Lagoon.
All avenues of transportation are busy in August.
All avenues of transportation are busy in August.
Dragonfly at Duarte's Pond in West Tisbury.
Dragonfly at Duarte's Pond in West Tisbury.
And on a lily pad.
And on a lily pad.
Roadside farmstand zinnias are familiar sight.
Roadside farmstand zinnias are familiar sight.
Sailing in the Vineyard Haven outer harbor.
Sailing in the Vineyard Haven outer harbor.
Learning on a Sunfish in the Lagoon.
Learning on a Sunfish in the Lagoon.
Picking sunflowers at the Farm Institute in Katama.
Picking sunflowers at the Farm Institute in Katama.
Cruise ship visits Vineyard Haven harbor.
Cruise ship visits Vineyard Haven harbor.
Bull frogs thunk their percussive songs; a screech owl calls from deep in the woods. In the garden black-eyed Susans and rose of Sharon fold up their blooms against the darkness. A stiff southwest breeze keeps the heat at bay, but even through the gusts a sticky blanket of humidity settles thickly. At the water's edge feeding fish break the surface with small splashes — smiling, perhaps, at the fisherman who got away.
August is at the halfway mark, and the nights are soft and full of quiet wonder.