The night air was cool and dry and the atmosphere was relaxed. Underneath our shoes, the dry grass made crunching noises. It had been a wonderful evening spent with this particular Thai family. Dinner, dancing, singing, balloons, performances. It was almost time to leave, but there was one last thing left to do. The lanterns.
Soon, they were brought out of the house. Tons of them. I cheered and applauded gleefully as Papa took one of the lanterns and a small mound of wax. Slowly, my family and I carefully unfolded the fragile paper thing and placed the wax on the thin but sturdy metal frame.
Then, with a lighter in his hand, Papa moved the small orange flame towards the mound of wax. Mummy, my sister and I gently tilted the lantern to allow easier entrance of the fire into the lantern. It did not take long for the wax to burst into bright golden flames. The warm orange glow of the fire caused our faces to light up with a soft radiance.
We held on to the lantern for another few minutes. Hot air began to build up in the lantern and it was soon bloated and ready. Still, the four of us did not loosen our grip just yet. The other families were still busy with their lanterns, and so we waited patiently for them. It did not take long for them to be done though. Moreover, the lantern that my family and I were holding on to was becoming even hotter than before, as if it was angry at us for holding it back from its flight.
Then, it was time.
All of the families, including mine, released the lanterns and they floated up into the night sky. It was as if they weighed nothing at all. The lanterns flew higher and lit up the sky, making the cold and dark night seem brighter and warmer. Soon, the lanterns were mere specks of light in the sky, like tiny golden diamonds on a sheet of black.
It was a beautiful sight. All we could do was stand in awe and wonder.
We watched until the lanterns got carried further away by the wind, until the clouds hid them, until they had flown all the way to the heavens.
Some Photos from Dec 2009 - Udon Thani Mission Trip, Kongming lanterns
Memories.