Paper lanterns

Lanterns remind me of a poster my mum had in her dressing room when I was little. I think it was called "Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose" and it was the picture to the upper right. My mum always said that the girl on the left looked like my childhood friend and that the girl on the right could have been me, but with darker hair...






so here are a host of lanterns for you, some floating on air, some floating on water, all sending a peaceful message, and somehow a message of hope.

Sounds corny, I'll bet, but that is truely how they make me feel when I see them bobbing about in the dark like overfed, stationary fireflies after a seriously good picnic...........................

Yesterday, M. loaned me a lovely little work of art, three antique drawings of paper lanterns floating in a blue sky background - akin to Magritte's floating rock/island...he said he knew I would like it, and I did. It is sitting up on my window now, inspiring me to remember summer despite 5 inches of snow and sleety rain on top of that, which is what we are faced with tonight.

Some time ago, I knew a person who had wonderful memories of growing up in India, making lanterns out of paper for festivals, competing with friends each year...and more recently, I heard about how traditional paper lantern makers are going out of business, as people are buying more fire-protective lanterns in India...so perhaps they are a dying breed. Enjoy!