Fireworks

Tonight, as I was walking out of Wal-Mart, I looked up to see fireworks from the nearby Utah Valley University baseball stadium. I absolutely LOVE fireworks, so seeing them made me happy. And, they brought back a memory that also made me happy.

When I was serving in Vilnius, Lithuania, we lived in the heart of the city so we were literally in the middle of it all during celebrations. Turns out those Lithuanians love to celebrate! It seemed that at least once a week, there were flags hanging from every building in honor of something. One night, as my companion and I were climbing into bed, we heard fireworks booming overhead. We ran out to our balcony in our pajamas to see what was going on. Unfortunately, the fireworks were on the other side of our building, so we couldn't see them although we lived on the top floor. Eventually we got used to this happening and stopped running out to see the colors reflecting on the buildings across from us.

Another night, as we were once again climbing into bed, we heard Baltic techo-funk music growing louder and louder. Finally, when it sounded like it was right outside our apartment, we had to check it out. When we stepped out onto the balcony, we saw a flat-bed tractor trailer someone had turned into a "discotech," complete with a DJ, flashing lights, and dancers. Behind the truck, snaking through the streets of downtown Vilnius, there were cars with all sorts of teenage kids hanging out the windows shouting, dancing, laughing, etc. It was crazy! My companion and I joked that since we couldn't go to the discotech, they brought the discotech to us. It was one of the strangest things I've ever seen in my life!