Hansy and the Orange Balloon

Yesterday, we attended the first birthday party of our neighbors' son, Shan. It was just like any other birthday with cake, food, and loot bags :); however, while waiting for other guests to arrive, my little Hansy was handed a wonderful orange balloon. And so, I scrapped the original post I was supposed to write (and make that a February entry) to make way for this little story told in pictures and quotes! I hope you enjoy reading this little post as much as Hansy enjoyed his orange balloon!

A balloon is a wonderful thing! It can be a metaphor for your ego (like an inflated balloon), your imagination (a helium balloon flying up and up the sky), or your life (wanting to soar but tethered to earth by strings attached). But for Hansy, it was a round orange wonder that drew out the tinker, the philosopher and the adventurer in little him.

At first, he said to Daddy (as interpreted by Mommy teehee), "Look! An orange ball! On a white stick!" And he continued to show it off to the rest of the people seated on the terrace. He bounced the "orange ball" around, and showed it to another man who told him, "Yes, balloon!" Then, he handed it to a lady, but quickly took it away again! Oh, was he excited to have such a wonderful thing!











He was not only excited about this orange balloon, but also really rather curious! He shook the white stick, and carefully examined the orange "ball". How did it get stuck to the stick? Perhaps I can take it off. So he tinkered with the "thing" in between the stick and the orange balloon. Hmmm...curiouser and curiouser! Nothing was too simple for his little open mind that was ready to absorb the world one little detail at a time.
 

 But after a while, he stopped his bouncing and tinkering. He seemed to have fallen into a deep reverie. For a full minute or two, he simply stood there, holding the orange balloon with a far away look in his eyes. Is he contemplating how life is like his orange balloon? How we can seem to be there, but our mind is somewhere else -- floating high up in another sky. Or, how life is as fragile as his orange balloon that with one pin prick we can burst in an instant--shattered by small words, small acts, small neglects. Oh, I really don't know what went on as he froze in our time! Perhaps, he took a wee trip somewhere else--carried away to a secret haunt by his lovely orange balloon.



Snapping out of his daze, Hansy raised his orange balloon and seemed to quote Winnie the Pooh.
Yes, who wouldn't be cheered by a bright orange balloon, especially on a gloomy day? Nobody can be too serious for so long either when someone hands you a bright orange balloon:)! It must be the little people's talent to find joy in the little things in the simple things...something that we, big people, often have to rediscover.

And so, it's time to work it! Not one to mope, our little man danced a jig, hence the blurry shot...
His antics brought out a smile on everyone's face. His glee was so contagious that we forgot our grumbling tummies! (We were waiting for the birthday lunch if you remember.)  Imagine how a little sunshine cast by an orange balloon is magnified by our little mirror of a cheerful boy. If only we could always remember that our lives are individual mirrors, reflecting what we choose to focus on, then perhaps we'd choose to be more radiant with what is good and pleasing (in the eyes of our Father).
But why did he dance? I could only guess! Perhaps, he remembered the movie, Up, that he watched last year...May be the orange balloon triggered the words: Adventure awaits!


Perchance, he imagined exploring the world in a hot air balloon! And every time he raised the white stick, he might have made a promise to some day soon when he is older, he'd set out on his own  grand adventure...

Sadly, just this afternoon in the course of writing this post, the wonderful orange balloon popped with a bang and was no more...But, hopefully when Hansy is older, he'd get to read his mommy's musings about his orange balloon and remember...all his plans for a great adventure!