Its a little of an irony that one day after the world remembered the 10th anniversary of 9/11, we celebrated Mid Autumn Festival where families came together for gatherings with mooncakes, tea, lanterns and the Moon.
I didn't have the time to celebrate, having had a lecture in the evening followed by a meeting till late at night. Fortunately as I walked through the park behind my house at around midnight, there were still pockets of people lingering around playgrounds and pavilions with still-lighted lanterns, allowing me to immerse in that little bit of whatever is left of the festive mood.
There were plenty of evidence that the park was a venue for many family celebrations earlier on. Grounds were burnt black; lanterns were left hanging on trees [a pity they weren't lighted up anymore]; everywhere was littered with used candles and sparklers.
Ignoring the littering, I am grateful that people still bothered to bring their children down to carry lanterns and play with, well, fire. As years go by and we move on, tradition has slowly given way to convenience, safety, and pure commercial gimmicks. Parents prefer light bulbs to candles; kids prefer stylish lanterns of their favourite toy characters to the traditional, err, lanterns. Some parents might decide to skip the lantern carrying altogether so that their kids can study; some kids might decide to skip the lantern carrying altogether so that they can watch TV or play games.
From what I saw at the park, that's not quite the case, at least not now yet. The litter can always be cleared, but traditions that are gone can never be found again. Not that I encourage people to litter, of course.
On the other hand, why do we hang on to tradition anyway?
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