april skies...

When I woke up this morning at 4:40 am I was a little disappointed.  Not in the hour {actually that is a great night of sleep!} but in the fact that over the weekend, 4:40 am meant this...

The past two years, the Balloons Over Paradise event has drenched me in emotion.  Dreams coming true. Sharing it with my Mom.  Learning things about myself.  But this year... the only emotion that played over my heart was joy!  I knew what to expect and I knew where I was headed... and we enjoyed every minute!

Saturday I did help out here and there, but mostly, I enjoyed the view.  {We missed some of the taking off last year because we were so busy helping Miss Daisy!}  The weather was perfect and as soon as one balloon inflated, it was off!  For a girl who loves looking up, the sky was especially beautiful... filled with color sailing away on the breeze.   One day I am going to do that...

We made a new friend this year... Doug with When Pigs Fly.  We helped him take down Ham-Let, then on Sunday, Camden & I helped him again.  It is not a small task to get a balloon back in the bag!  When we were done, we were huffing and puffing, and smiling.

We also got to help put up a balloon...
And Camden got to sit in the basket all morning to keep it weighted down.
{Most of my pictures from Sunday are from under the Purple People Eater balloon!}

Just before heading home, Cam decided he definitely needed a treat, which I will categorize as "worth the calories!"  A hot, soft, salty pretzel with warm donut glaze.  He said he wasn't going to let me even have a bite, but that sweet son of mine can't resist his mother!  Or... he didn't want to walk home!

I am already looking ahead to next April.  Not wishing the time away, just knowing that when it arrives, we will add to our traditions and our list of joy.

stepping over the line {part 2}

Way back here I promised that there would be more...

and then yesterday, I double promised...

When I asked the question about the balloons flying, the answer was maybe.  They were waiting for the fog to lift.  Balloons were inflated but still on the ground to conserve fuel just in case.  And then, just in case happened, the balloons were upright and the sky filled.  I could hardly breathe.  It was a dream come true... to see colors in the sky.

As the balloons were setting sail, Miss Daisy was coming down... and we were opening the petals we had sealed in the dark. 

I was torn... between wanting to help and wanting to see the sky in full color.  In my mind I was stretched out on a blanket gazing at the sky... but sometimes what you plan isn't as perfect as what actually happens.  With my camera around my neck we hustled around Miss Daisy and then, taking off our shoes, we shuffled along the silk helping the air find its way out...  The silk billowed up and around us and along with the air, joy and laughter bubbled forth.

I shuffled, looked up to the sky, and snapped shot after shot over the clouds of silk... all the while, laughing and knowing that there was no better view.    Perhaps all my life I have been a stand-on-the-sidelines kind of girl... but God has changed me for the better.  He has taught me that the gap between enjoying the view and dancing with abandon isn't as wide as I believed it to be... and that to accept that hand that is reaching to pull you across is a grace all in itself. 

My dream to sail over the treetops in a hot air balloon remains a dream... even though we flew high in a tethered balloon.  I loved being in that balloon, seeing the world from on high, but something in me has changed... and the seeing doesn't fill me like the doing. 

Hot, sticky and weary, it felt like afternoon as we walked out across the field, homeward bound...  and we were all amazed that morning would be around for another hour or so.  But the weary was a good weary and the sticky didn't stop my Mom from leaning in and whispering just how amazed she was at me stepping over the line of caution tape.  I smiled... and confessed a little fear, that there was a split second of hesitation.  But OH! there was a joy worth living on the other side and I wouldn't have changed one moment.  Not one.
 
did you miss part one?
and find some more photos here and yesterday's post...

because I didn't forget...

Nope. I didn't. A promise is a promise.  More ballooons...

But the story?  Coming tomorrow.  Yes. I promise.

stepping over the line {part one}

Five of us headed out into the dark morning... off for an adventure.  Marked on my calendar nearly a year, I was so excited to share it with my Mom & Bob, and so happy that Eric & Camden agreed to rise long before the sun. {poor Laura had a math final...ouch}

We were giddy at first sight, and I tried not to run ahead, but I wanted to be there on that field, camera poised, capturing everything.  As we navigated the grounds, sun still yet to rise, I did notice yellow caution tape stretched out... and with only a split second of hesitation, I stepped right over it, making like I knew just where I was going.  And that landed us in just the right place to make the day fly beyond our imagination.  Crew for the Miss Daisy?  Yes. Yes... definitely yes.

While the world was still dark and most everyone we knew was fast asleep, any expectations we had slipped into our pockets had fallen by the wayside.  We unravelled and stretched silk, closed petal vents; we worked up a sweat; we smiled, took pictures and laughed.  When the fans started whirring, Miss Daisy came to life... and Camden slipped off his size huge blue sneakers, walked inside with Dan (Mr. Miss Daisy) and helped close the top vents, while Eric & Susan (Mrs. Miss Daisy) worked from the outside.  

Before too long,  cold air turned hot, and Miss Daisy was standing tall.   Dan called to Eric for ballast, and into the basket he went, listening to every story Dan had tell... for a couple of hours.  I ran out across the field, trying to photograph our work of art, pausing to hold up the lens, and then backing up a little more, and a little more... until finally I could see the whole of her...

My mom joined me out there, and as we noticed Cam & Grampa wander off, Eric still in the basket, we found ourselves another job.  We pleated a silo, and closed up the roof of the barn... and already, the day was far more than we bargained for, far greater than we hoped.   The sun was on the rise, and although there was fog lying low,  I dared to hope about the weather and finally asked the question will the balloons fly today?  

to be continued... 

{oh yes, there is more... because what goes up must come down!}

the balloons, part two

I was juggling my camera and my phone, snapping pictures with both. I was in awe of how close we were allowed to be, no one pushing us back except to say be careful of the tether rope, so up close, I was. I wanted to capture it all... the thin silk of the balloon, the heat of the flame, the air that was rushing, and most of all, the excitement and thrill that was running through me. The teen caught me jumping up and down and shook her head with a bright smile.  I just laughed back at her.

As the balloons reached skyward, the balloon tethers were stretched taut... and in the midst of the field, men were working the ropes tethered to the tops of the balloons. Something came over me and I asked if you had to be really strong to hold the rope. He smiled, handed me to loop, and off he went. I may have let a scream of excitement escape... I was holding a balloon!!!

But my fun did not end there. I returned Sunday morning with Eric, Laura & Cam. We were watching the magic when Cam was tapped on the shoulder and offered a job crewing Miss Daisy. He nodded, my insides screamed, and off we went. Half-way there I decided I was not going to just stand by and take pictures... I was not going to miss this moment. I jumped right in beside him when it was time to spread out the balloon. The next step was to closed velcro zippers around the petals... and all the while we worked, I thought of how dancing in Africa had brought me here. Here, where I banish fear and live in the moment. Here, with no regrets.

Balloons continued to be rolled out and inflated, side by side by side. The field was covered with splashes of color, lines of rope and bustling people. It seemed there was hardly room to walk. And then... in what seemed the next moment, the ground was bare and it was the air that had donned the colorful wardrobe. Eric and Laura lended their leverage to Tequila Sunrise and visited with its pilot while Cam and I wandered off to find a pilot I had met the morning before.

by laura

And when we found him, he put us to work. I didn't mind the balloons being deflated if I could help! We steadied the basket while it tipped and then worked bundling the balloon. I loved the process... air released, silk rippling, and then putting it all back in its bag. There was lots of laughter and joking while we worked... and joy over being able to do more than just admire. I suppose for me, the beauty of something has become more than what my eye can see... it is also in being a part of something, being all in and the excitement that blooms in my soul.

Someday I want that up, up and away...
but these six hours {over two mornings} were life-filled.
Colors billowing, tethers reaching, and me throwing caution to the wind.

the balloons, part one

My love affair with hot air balloons surely began the year I was in first grade... the year the Double Eagle made its attempt to cross the Atlantic Ocean. I was there when it lifted off, in my hometown.
I remember the sand pit, the orange helium balloon someone passed me, and rays of sun so bright and low. And I remember the cake my Mom made for the pilots, a replica of their black and silver-y balloon. There was a photo of her with the cake and the pilot, too... and her smile was as bright as that sunshine.
: :
I have dreamed of going to a hot air balloon festival... even schemed crazy treks across the nation to try to get to one. But the timing has never been quite right. Last September I found out that a local group was planning a festival, and it has been on my calendar ever since. And this past weekend... the balloons arrived.

We planned to on Sunday, but the excitement of it all pushed me to gather a couple people to drive out on Saturday too. The early morning was a tough sell... but in the end, everyone agreed that it was worth it. Pulling up to the lot, I spotted my first balloon aglow, and all my giddy spilled over. My friend's teen turned and laughed... telling me I was acting like a five-year-old. She was not wrong... but what is life if we do not let our laughter and excitement spill over the top?  

The morning was glorious... and too windy for the balloons to lift off. Eric asked it that ruined it, but truly, nothing could have ruined for me. Heat of the fire, race of the blowing fans, brilliant colors almost aloft... and I was right in the midst of it! I love those flying colors... and could have watched them all day.
But it turns out, even though no one was flying, I could do more than watch...

to be continued...