I wish it was cereal, but instead today is Deepavali (or Diwali, or Divali, or...) so the crackers have been going off all - day - long. Diwali is a festival of light, a joyous occasion of good beating out evil, a time of gift-giving, new clothes, and shiny jewelry. It's basically the Hindu Christmas based on the story the Ramayana with loads of little tea-lighted or oil-filled diyas fending off evil. Houses are lit up with strings of lights. Snacks and sweets are shared among family and friends. And there are crackers. Lots and lots of crackers that started sporadically yesterday, built up all day today and are now in full swing with the coming of dark. It's sounds like a war zone and there's no where to get away from it since the crackers are set off in every direction around the house. There's a movement for quieter, less polluted ways of celebration but I don't think we'll see any progress during our limited time here.
There is one day of the 5-day festival we might incorporate to our list of holidays, Bhaubeej or BhaiDooj. It's a day where siblings honor each other with blessings and pledges of support. Goodness knows we could use some of that around here.
Happy Deepavali!
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