This evening I caught a firefly outside my parents’ home in suburban Chicago. I saw my first firefly of the season last Thursday, June 22nd, which is a bit early for the season, but I could not catch it. Tonight I finally caught one and watched it glow. This has been a midsummer fascination of mine since I was a child, and it continues to delight me.
I tried to get a photo of the flash (which I sort of did). The problem is that fireflies tend to glow less often when you hold them, and they try to climb to the high point of your hand to fly away, so you have to keep curling your fingers around of knocking them gently back into your palm.
I took a photo of the firefly with the iPhone Live function, which lets you capture images over a period of time. I happened to get my wedding ring in the frame — perfect. I then let the firefly in the photograph go, and I tried with another. It would not glow for me and I think I may have hurt it by knocking it too hard into my palm.
I felt quite sad about that. I’m not a child; I should have the self-control not to harm a firefly. I don’t want to be too dramatic about it, but I felt I had injured a symbol of love by trying to use it, trying to make it conform to my own imagination. Real love is like that, too: it’s fragile and you have to respect that, while also letting it be what you want it to be.
This week, we are tackling two major areas of contention between the Trump administration and Democrat governors: fighting crime, and redistricting. The president is sending the National Guard to blue cities -- and blue states are trying to stamp out Republican representation. Is this a civil war situation?
Special guests:
- Bradley Jaye -- Breitbart News congressional correspondent, on redistricting
- Tom Manza, California Business and Industrial Alliance, on Gavin Newsom
- Jon Fleischman, veteran California political expert, on the special election
- Dan Backer, veteran political lawyer and consultant, on corruption
- DJ Mark Anthony, on a recent visit to Rome and visiting Pope Leo XIV
Tune in: SiriusXM Patriot 125, 7-10 p.m. ET / 4-7 p.m. PT
Call: 866-957-2874
This week's portion is the last of the month of Av -- also known as Menachem (Comforter) Av -- which begins in mourning and ends in celebration and anticipation of the New Year and the process of repentance and renewal.
In a similar vein, the portion features Moses offering the Israelites a choice between a blessing and a curse. They are masters of their own fates: if they obey God's commandments, they receive the blessings -- and vice versa.
The key commandment is to reject idol worship. There is said to be something magnetic about the practice of worshiping idols in the new land, such that it would be constant moral battle, both individually and collectively, in the land.
Nowadays, according to Jewish tradition, humanity has lost the urge for idol worship (and the antidote, which is divine prophecy) -- but there are several near substitutes, such as lust or excessive appetites for worldly pleasures.
We are wired for compulsive behaviors, bad habits, and even addictions. These ...
We have so much to talk about this week -- Trump's efforts to negotiate peace through negotiation, and Gavin Newsom's efforts to divide Americans through gerrymandering. We'll also talk about Playboy leaving LA and California.
Special guests:
Frances Martel - Breitbart News foreign editor, on Russia & Ukraine
Bradley Jaye - Breitbart News congressional correspondent, on Newsom
Harmeet Dhillon - DOJ Civil Rights Division chief, on the fight against DEI
Jessica Vaugn - Playboy model on political commentator, on California
Tune in: SiriusXM Patriot 125, 7-10 p.m. ET, 4-7 PT
Call: 866-957-2874
