paper lights

:: paper lights ::

I watched my sisters fumble with their paper lanterns, their faces marked with childish concentration. We preserved the tradition of using paper lanterns - the modern battery operated oneswith grinning cartoon caricatures and electronic tunes are result of a grotesque evolution, and I'm glad certain traditions are still kept, still treasured, still applicable.

'You used to play like that,' said my grandma, grinning toothlessly, her old eyes kind and gentle.
I looked at my sisters and felt a tender ache for their innocence. One day they would know heartache and loss; they would grapple with lust and adult anger; they would learn discontentment and self-preservation; they would be adults.

But before that, they would still have some years of making dreams. They would have faith and childish wonder. They would be honest. They would find happiness in obscure, trivia things. I watched the candles flicker inside their frail paper lanterns, and I wished time was kinder, more patient, and more passionate that those trapped within its silver whisper.

***

I miss you.