Day 2 - 181 -- Concussive Light Displays

Happy Canada Day!  The day was relaxed as a holiday should be. The evening was spent with friends at an annual gathering to build your own pizza followed by fireworks in the yard. It was a fantastic event as usual. The pizzas constructed were tasty, original and even artistic. We were joined this year by a visiting researcher and his wife who are from Greece. It made the day even more special to spend it with visitors to the country.

No matter where they occur, fireworks displays seem to be filled with delight -- lots of 'ooos' and 'aaawws' -- and spontaneous clapping. Tonight was no different. It is interesting that blowing things up and creating beautiful skyward displays of sparkling embers can create the happy reaction that it does. The noises alone can be frightening. I've heard several people say that adrenaline is part of the excitement of the fireworks. So feeling the concussions of the explosions deep inside -- the liver rattling effect -- and seeing the sparks and embers explode at what seems to be directly over one's head can be part of the delight of the experience. Yet, it is all about context. I recall a family who had just emigrated from Northern Ireland to Saskatchewan in the 1970s. At a sale day for a large department store, a balloon popped and the family of three children and their mother were instantly on the floor tucked up close to display counters.  Context. I expect that there are people for whom the explosion of fireworks brings less than pleasant feelings and memories. We live in a nation where few of us have experienced the explosions of wars -- for this we are very lucky.

There are compositions that work very well as accompaniments to fireworks, such as Handel's 'Music for the Royal Fireworks' -- which was the soundtrack to the display witnessed tonight. The selection for the blog today is another composition that seems made for a fireworks display. Enjoy!

Ride of the Valkyries -- Wagner