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rich.” Dace squats down and examines the base of the rock pile. “My family couldn’t afford for me to go to school. So I did the holodisc and ’sphere thing, just like you. At least that was free, thanks to the library. Hey, did you know there’s air rising up from under these rocks?” He places his hand over one of the small fissures in the pile.
    “What’s that mean?”
    “Probably caverns under here. Makes sense. You said there’s lots of underground water?”
    “Yes, but near the compound it’s held in pockets. Natural cisterns.”
    Dace holds up his hand, palm up. “Damp. Which means there’s water down there. I bet that’s where those flying insect-like creatures actually live.” He leans forward and peers at the base of the rock pile.
    “Careful. Those stones are unstable.” I shift on my hard seat. I certainly don’t want to lose my family’s ticket off Eco to a slide.
    “Damn!” Dace rocks back on his heels. He swings his electronic device in a wide arc over the ground and another globe forms.
    Trapped in its soft glow is a tiny lizard-like creature.
    “Oh, wow.” Dace gets down on his hands and knees to stare into the globe. “Come look at this, Ann.”
    I don’t move. “I’ve seen them skittering around plenty of times.”
    “Yes, but have you ever really looked at them? I mean, really looked.” Dace turns his head to gaze at me.
    The wonderment in his eyes captures my attention. I slide off the rock and crawl over to examine the creature. “What’s so fascinating?”
    “Well, check it out.” Dace sits up, making room for me to peer into the globe.
    At first glance, it looks like an ordinary lizard. At least, like all the holo images of lizards I’ve seen. As I look closer, I realize the creature is covered in perfect, iridescent scales. Its tiny head has the snout of alligator, but its eyes, quite large for its face, are as green as new leaves.
    “It’s beautiful.” I whisper, surprised to hear those words leave my mouth.
    “Yes, and again, more like something that lives mostly in water, not on land.” Dace adjusts something on the device then swipes to free the little creature. It darts away, disappearing into a small crack in the rock pile.
    “Well, you’ve lucked out so far. Those two things are basically all I’ve ever seen around here.” I rise to my feet, brushing the sand from my jeans. “There’s one other little insect thing. Smaller than the one you found. Don’t know if we’ll see any of those today, though. They usually come out closer to dusk.”
    “This is fantastic.” Dace stands, slipping the digital device into his pocket. “Really.” He turns to me with a bright smile. “Thank you, Ann. You knew exactly where to look.”
    “But not how, apparently.” I am still processing my reactions to the two creatures we’ve found. Though I’ve seen them so many times, until Dace pointed them out I never really looked at them. I never realized they were so unique or beautiful.
    “Most people don’t,” says Dace, without rancor. “Everyone just moves along lost in their own heads, never noticing much.”
    “Except you.”
    “Well, I’m a naturalist. Comes with the territory. And I like to see things, you know, the way they really are. Not just what I think they might be.” Dace steps back and stares at the pile of large rocks. “Did you ever study the Impressionists?”
    “The artists? Sure. Pretty cool stuff.”
    “Well, that was their thing, looking at landscapes and objects and even people with a clear eye. Really seeing, without filtering through the lens of what they expected to see.” Dace reaches out and slips his fingers between two of the rocks. “Looking without prejudice or preconceptions.” He yanks one of the rocks free.
    I shriek, fearing a slide that will bury us both. “What the hell are you doing?” I shout, racing to his side and slapping his hand from the rocks.
    Dace turns to me, his face perfectly calm. “I think