When dusk pulls the covers over the mountains, in that soft moment between afternoon and evening, before the stars light the sky, the first lights appear.
Tiny little sparks that burst into a flame and puff out before your eyes can catch them.
If you stand on the deck and look down into the tall grass below, and for just a moment hold your breath and stand still, you’ll catch a twinkle out of the corner of your eye.
Then another.
And suddenly, the meadow is sprinkled with the tiniest little lanterns, blinking on and off among the grasses as if the mountain itself has begun to glow.
It’s as fast as a shooting star and just as easy to miss.
You’ll catch a firefly. And then another.
And somehow, without even realizing it, you’ll find yourself chasing them through the grass, transported back to a summer long ago, when your world was a little smaller and magic was a little easier to find.
A Mason jar in one hand. The lid, already poked with tiny air holes, in the other.
You’d run through the grass, laughing, trying to catch just one more.
And then, of course, you’d run for your camera, because surely everyone needed to see what you had just discovered. Did I get one? Only to find that these little secrets are hard to capture.The light disappears just before the shutter clicks.
But you try anyway.
Because some things are too beautiful not to share.
And maybe that’s the magic of a summer evening at Berry Springs Lodge.
It reminds you of something you may have forgotten.
That there is still wonder in the world.
That sometimes the sweetest moments are the ones you weren’t looking for.
And that every now and then, all you have to do is stand still, hold your breath, and watch the little lanterns come alive.
As darkness settles over the mountains, you may notice another light, too.
The warm glow of Berry Springs Lodge.
Because some places are more than somewhere to stay.
Some places feel like coming home.
And Berry Springs Lodge always leaves a light on.