Sky Lantern
I have been counting days since July was about to end. I planned that this August fiesta my “would be” photography subject is — the sky lantern also known as Kongming lantern sometimes called fire balloon. I like to earn extra income and hoping I could buy a fast lens that could aid me to shoot in low light condition. My emotional trouble this summer heated up my feet and wanted to wander and return to my roots. I thought it would be a good turn to finally finish some of my writings I promised to do. The usual writing chores trouble me to detail any activity pertains to my subject because of my physical absence to my theme story. I always write in my keen memory of the past though sometimes accuracy blundered me, so I usually fill-up corrections in the comments of my blog.
You could buy lantern now a days online at http://www.10kblessingsfengshuiboutique.com/wishing-ceremonies/auspicious-red-sky-lantern
Once again work schedules had lighten my early August and spur me to write about a simple tradition that never fail to amaze the locals and its bring-in visitors from the city.I tend my self to partially write about this and later conclude it with pictures and photograph I want to take(so help me God).
“Palipad ng Lobo” always announce over the P.A. system, as an intermission of a fireworks display. Already astonished by the flashing fireworks and its ephemeral amazement, the sky lantern sealed the whole show. The sequence sometimes was as close as 3 minutes interval that you almost see trails of lights from the distant. East Asian monsoon drifted them away to places we kids are puzzled where those going to land. We are praying that monsoon will blow them away from Nipa roof of our houses. Surely no fire had been reported, it may contribute to some spontaneous forest fire and I’m sure it always attributed to something else other that the sky lantern. This Chinese origin tradition according to popular lore could be the first hot air balloon. Chinese useful invention just like the wheels, papers and compass are never attributed to inventors instead to significant historical figures or reigns of certain dynasty.
Physics behind that is simple, when a combustible fuel is lit such as textile soak in oil, the resulting hot air which is trapped inside the lantern creates enough lift for lantern to float up in to the sky. There , while our mouths are open ,mesmerized by scene brought by its gaiety, we sometimes jump overjoy with teary eyes circling the open-sky with its sight while we are jiggle by orchestral sound of playing band usually hire from distant town of Cavite. I often run about towards its direction hoping I could glance it longer as it disappear in distance horizon and then I return to where it is lighted , prepared and ques for flying. Though I hardly read some text written in crumpled Japanese paper, but I clearly see “Donated by:”. And when heated gas were fully inflate the balloon and warming recognitions of the names were read and announce, we talked about the name in it. Who was that? my friend say “One day you shall work abroad and return every fiesta and your name is there”… wow! We’re burning money? I chuckled that’s cool anyway.
With curiousness at young age, my friends and I were mimicking such sky lantern flying by using a crumpled Pandesal wrapper , lit and shouting with joy as it lifts from the ground and with short lived flight into Aplaya’s air, a shout from a far of concern parents that we endanger houses nearby of what we did. Pinched and berated while crying, nevertheless our experiment works, ouch that hurts.
We seldom see failure to launch, a great accuracy of lantern’s fliers constitute to each fault-free sequence. Imagined you just donated a lantern, with your proud name in it and it turn to flames before its lift off? It might be an irony of our life, that as equal to frequent success of many, many failures too are going to happen. I wish we can perfectly fly our life with such precision.
Fiesta is in the air “mga kababaryo” lets make it again a memorable one.
ncenizal
