fireworks!

{my town}

growing up, fireworks were an annual party on or around july 4th i remember well.

the anticipation.

the wanting to get a good seat at the local community days festival.

laying out a blanket and waiting with my family and friends for that first boom they would shoot off.  no color, just a warning boom to announce the fireworks are coming!  as a teenager, i always seemed to work on fireworks day, but the anticipation was still as great. the restaurant would empty out right before so we would all crawl up on the restaurant roof to get a view.

we would all sit at attention, face toward the sky, bodies silhouetted by the exploding lights, ooohing and aaahing with every pop!  some plugging their ears,  each excitedly pointing out our favorite kind: "oh i like the waterfall ones",   "i love the big round ones", "oh how about the ones that crackle?!?!"  yes! yes! yes!

all that build up for something so fleeting, yet never disappointing.  i think only having them once a year where i grew up, they really did it pretty big for the suburbs.  

now i live far from that place of my memories.

we have no  traveling carnivals, rather we have a seasonal carnival in our own backyard so to speak.  it is strange living in a town that people come and go each week, and then at the end of summer empties out like a ghost town.  but one really special thing we have are weekly fireworks.  each thursday night we can gather ourselves and  make the trek down toward the carnival or beach,  take our place among the travelers, and neighbors, and gaze skyward for a mini fireworks display.  it hasn't seemed to have lost its anticipation factor even though we know we get 8 weeks of them. (weather permitting) 

kellen starts the day's dialogue by lunchtime: if we are going and when,  i tell him at least 45 times that day yes honey, if it doesn't rain honey, at 9:30pm kellen, yes , no not now, soon, no its not dark yet, no it's not 9pm yet, really, i promise, soon.   he gets so anxious about it, it can't be missed, mommy you are going to miss them!!!!!!!!!   :)) 

 i see he loves them just as much as i did that summer day when i was a kid.  i like how universal and timeless it all seems.  how no matter how much life has changed, some things  truly remain the same.   

happy 4th of july weekend everyone.

so what is your favorite???

mine?  the waterfall ones.   :)