I’ve spent a few evenings this week rocking in the hammock as day dwindles to darkness. It’s a show worth watching. 

At first, my focal point has been the sky, the lightning bugs (fewer than last year but still blinking), and the garden, in peak bloom with coneflowers, day lilies, roses and zinnias. 

Eventually, though, I can’t help but notice the house, which appears almost fetching in the half-light. I can’t spot its deficiencies as I do in the no-nonsense noontime glare. I forget about the azalea that needs pruning, the deck that needs mending, the door that needs replacing. 

All I see is my home. How beautiful it looks … from a distance.