[ 12.2010 | Rohrbach ]

from time to time, I used to walk home from my office after work. I enjoyed to be freed from being tied to that chair and locked behind that desk, imprisoned in the bubble of duties of a working day. one day in early December, some people had already put up their Christmas decorations. during this time of year, the romantic city of Heidelberg, becomes even more magical than usual. walking through the snow in the dark, the small lights on the trees reminded me of fireflies.

most lightning bugs – and there are more than 2,000 species – are winged, which distinguishes them from other luminescent insects of the family. fireflies produce their light within special organs, placed under the abdomen/tail: in combination with oxygen (+calcium and adenosine triphosphate) special cells combine it with luciferin. the result of the chemical reaction is their signature glow. the light is usually intermittent and flashes in blinking patterns unique to each species. their scientific name is ‘Lampyridae’, coming from the Greek ‘lampein’ meaning ‘to shine’.

‘firefly’, singular, is a science fiction TV-series that is placed in the far future. with their space ship Serenity, a renegade crew tries to survive as they travel unidentified parts of the galaxy. to create a link to this picture, I adapted the space western’s font. and as the scenery seemed so out of space, I put there an extraterrestrial being discovering earthly beauty.

sources:
nationalgeographic.com | imdb.com