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Lanterns floating skyward express festival happiness
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NOBODY can say that the Mid-Autumn Festival is not fun, since it has the elements of home, family and friends — elements so easily lost in present-day society, with the loss of traditional family values.
Walking through the loneliness of life, there is a park here in Nanjing where I try to isolate myself and feel in touch with nature.
Far away from home, I’m feeling emotional while I’m here in China. It then came to me how lucky I was and how attitudes can easily change!
Watching too many students come and go. Wondering why those youngsters who are caught in consumerist values aren’t home with family or at least sharing with friends.
Some of us are trying to escape from consumerism and enjoy our lives in simple contentment, surrounded by friends in the warmth of life. Then, as late afternoon (September 19) progressed, I was invited to a barbecue. Yeah, there was this special moment to indulge in this festival!
Ending the throes of summer, and searching for those cooler days of autumn, this was just a perfect late September day. A cloudless sky in a sea of blue and not too uncomfortable heat. Perfect but for the mosquitoes!
Inside our small community, foreign and Chinese alike came out to socialize.
Even if it was for a short moment, to set-up a roundtable made people feel like those in the older stories of King Arthur. It made a person feel festive, alive, in an environment of great food.
My heart filled with content and I knew that this was home (for now) and I was blessed to be among many extraordinary people and their philosophical takes on life.
The day turned to evening with an excellent and cloudless full-moon. The grander way would’ve been feasting on moon-cakes, but it all went perfectly well for us.
However, we had our own take with different appetizers and spirits.
This was a moment to further indulge in the fascination of good drink, rich food and conversation. Heart’s happiness indeed. Desires arose with this great night. One for memory and friendship that always needs to be rekindled!
Then, there was the thought, why celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival?
More than traditions, it was that “eureka moment” that comes with peace. It was about sharing.
What a simple concept and grander yet, when a perfect day was made even better as lanterns were lit and as seconds turned to minutes, they floated into the bright nocturnal sky!
There were applause of exhilaration, euphoria and whoops of happiness or maybe I’m exaggerating.
The loneliness that I felt earlier was gone, like the lanterns, they had lifted my spirit!
And although away from family, I was blessed to finally celebrate this festivity correctly! I was surrounded by deep and warm feelings of love.
Daniel Otero is a freelance writer and foreign teacher at the Nanjing University of Finance and Economics.
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