And it burns, burns, burns,
The ring of fire, the ring of fire.
by June Carter and Merle Kilgore, performed by Johnny Cash
Oh, boy, are you in for a treat! I'm taking you to one of Ajijic's Fiestas Patrias celebrations, the Saturday afternoon Globos.
The grandstands are full of spectators, the air full of anticipation...
...and balloons!
In every shape and every color.
On the ground, the teams are hustling to get their handmade creations filled with hot air and sent aloft.
This is no easy task, as the balloons are crafted of tissue paper,
weighted with water bottles, the air within heated by, yup, you guessed it: a burning ring of fire.
Hmmm. Paper, fire. Paper, fire. Interesting combination, no?
Oops. Oh well, not to worry. The teams bring plenty of extras.
Back to work. All over the field, balloon-makers are busy: on ladders, stoking fires to warm the air inside the globos, calling for "cinta! cinta!" (tape), carefully (very carefully) lighting the rings of fire inside their fragile creations.
And then, up they go! The crowd cheers every time a balloon floats free, into the glorious blue skies of Ajijic. They watch with bated breath to see whether an errant gust of wind will tip the balloon enough to allow the flames inside to ignite the tissue. Will it fly? It will! It did! Friends of ours miles away reported seeing globos drifting by, still high in the sky.
Victory!
Or not.
You might think this was sad, even tragic. Perhaps it was. But I've got to tell you, there were times when I was laughing so hard I could barely stand up. I was filled with an earthy joy at this amazing spectacle. Seeing the children and adults rush up from every direction to witness firsthand the latest conflagration, commiserating briefly with the team who had just burned up their creation. The team, heads hung momentarily, then reaching into the pile of backups for their next attempt. The crowd dispersing to find another potential success or disaster, stopping for a cotton candy along the way.
It was just so....Mexico.
Late in the afternoon I spotted a spectacular globo being inflated across the field. I scampered over to watch.
This one is a real challenge with its many protuberances and places for rips to happen. Calls for "cinta!", instructions from the lead guy on the ladder, more hands mustered to check for leaks and support the expanding balloon.
As the heated air enters, the pockets begin to fill. The balloon grows and grows. The crowd moves closer, captivated by its size and beauty.
Suddenly, from far beneath the paper mountain, a voice rings out, alarmed. Frantically, the team scrambles, seeking the problem. Too late. A lick of flame.
In seconds, the magnificent creation is cinders, floating through the air, scorching the ground.
I fell for you like a child,
Oh, but the fire went wild.
Ah, well. You win some, you lose some. There are ups and downs and tryings again. That's life everywhere. Here in Mexico it is rawer, somehow. It is part of daily life and part of a treasured celebration.
The thing is, they'll start over. They'll take the risk of creating something even more wonderful than the thing that burned, knowing full well the capriciousness of life and creation, but taking a chance anyway.
Maybe that's why I was laughing so hard. It just seems right to me.
❍ ❖ ♡ ♢ ❍
(The next day was the rodeo! Tune in next week for that...but first, scroll down to see what happened when Tracy Guadalupe met Rafi the Temporarily Broken Puppy!)
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What a wonderful festival to take part in. The beauty of these creations is exacerbated by the looming sense of tragedy that seems to be omnipresent. Some of the creators of these pieces of artwork might find joy in experiencing flight if only there was an alternate source of hot air. TRAVIS, can you help us out here?
(yeah I said it)
Posted by: jeremy | September 25, 2011 at 12:36 PM
excellent job, my Dad Francis Hopper use to be the FIRE marshall back in the 60's
Posted by: Lee Hopper | September 20, 2011 at 03:12 PM
Very impressive creations! What fun that must have been!
Posted by: Jeanne | September 18, 2011 at 05:52 PM
What a treat to travel through a day in Ajijic and to discover something so "delightful"...... something just for fun and short term fun at that! I love this, it reminded me of the exquisitly beautiful sandwork the Buddhas do, only to be raked over. For the love of the moment. Yet another Mexican Moment to make you smile.......... :) Can you hardly believe how lucky you are to have discovered this magical place?
Posted by: Gretchen Goodliffe | September 16, 2011 at 10:37 AM