My Neon Knight

“But my favorite color is neon, the light they always leave on…with a little Johnny Lee on” Chris Young, Neon

Brett was so excited when it finally showed up. 

We had been battling insects all summer and he ordered the most giant, industrial-strength bug zapper he could find. First came the clouds of mosquitoes, which were miserable enough. Next, we were overrun with yellow jackets and bald-faced hornets. Then the bald-faced hornets were so prolific we weren’t seeing any yellow jackets because this type of hornet is double the size, extremely aggressive, and very territorial.

We were seeing more and more of them flying around. I had a nasty sting the summer before where my whole leg swelled and felt like it was on fire for a week–we assumed it was more than the average bee or yellow jacket. One day we were outside and heard this eerie crunching-munching sound. There was a swarm of them on top of the kids’ playhouse peeling off the roof to build a nest.

That’s the point in the summer we became housebound and afraid to go outside (and also the biggest reason we didn’t invite anyone over to play as planned).

Brett and the kids found the nest in an apple tree accidentally and it’s a miracle no one was stung.

With this discovery, we called an exterminator and he came out and encapsulated the nest. With the queen and most of the workers gone, any workers left would die off without a nest to come home to. In theory. We were still seeing them. The hornets would see someone inside and try to attack through the window.

This is the point in the story the beast of all bug zappers arrived. It wasn’t just Brett, we were all excited and hoped it really would clear 2 square acres as promised.

Later that evening, the kids were finally asleep. I grabbed my book and headed to my corner chair in the living room to relax. That was when I discovered Brett had chosen to hang the bug zapper right out the living room window. I’ve been working to make this room beautiful and relaxing. It has floor-to-ceiling windows to enjoy. I rediscovered my love of reading in this chair and found that it is a comfortable place to write also. My little corner had been invaded.

The gigantic bug zapper lit up the room with a sort of radioactive glow. It was also loud. Very loud. An extra large bug zapper makes an extra loud zap and sizzle, and this was happening about every 10-15 seconds. I was already on edge from stress at work and exhaustion from parenting, the noise–even through the window–made me jumpy and my skin crawl. I went to bed made and I’m sure I woke up mad too.

There are seasons in a marriage where teamwork clicks. Two become one, better together, and the whole nine yards. On the other hand, there are also seasons where it feels like two people actively working against each other. Was it really too much to ask to have a beautiful, relaxing living room? A little corner of my own that inspired creativity or encourage rest?

Country radio was the soundtrack to my childhood. I hear the hits and one-hit wonders of the 80s and 90s playing in the background in most of my memories. It’s also the music I was drawn to over the past summer and rediscovered some of my old favorites. Little Miss Honky Tonk by Brooks & Dunn came on and I caught a few words that I hadn’t paid attention to before. There’s a line “she’ll be my Queen Bee, I’ll be her Neon Knight” and it stopped me in my tracks. 

This heavy-duty bug zapper wasn’t a curse on my sanity or meant to be sabotage, it was my Neon Knight! Though still ridiculous, this was an intentional purchase to protect our family. It was part of the offensive game plan to reclaim our yard and outdoor living spaces. The Neon Knight is one of a long list of ways my husband has actively and lovingly served us. I decided I could live with neon, at least until the weather freezes, and I thought of all the other songs I love that talk about neon.

“Oh, but I’ll be alright as long as there’s light from a neon moon” Brooks & Dunn, Neon Moon 

This post is part of a blog hop with Exhale—an online community of women pursuing creativity alongside motherhood, led by the writing team behind Coffee + Crumbs. Click here to view the next post in the series “Words to Carry”.