One warm summer night, Mom took Zoe outside after dark. The yard was full of tiny glowing lights.
Fireflies! said Mom. Zoe had never seen them before. She reached out her hand.
A firefly landed on her finger. It glowed on and off, on and off, like a tiny lamp.
Why do they glow? Zoe asked softly, afraid to scare it away.
They flash to talk to each other, said Mom. It is their way of saying hello.
Hello! Zoe whispered to the firefly. The firefly blinked and flew off into the dark.
Zoe and Mom sat in the grass for a long time, watching the lights dance all around them.
That night Zoe dreamed of glowing lights floating through a warm and whispering darkness.