“I’d be smiling and chatting away, and my mind would be floating around somewhere else, like a balloon with a broken string.”
― The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle
Lancaster is known for its Pennsylvania Dutch foods and the Amish population to most of the country but it also is home to the annual Lancaster Hot-Air Balloon Festival in Central Pennsylvania. The small town of Bird-In-Hand hosts the event in the fall that brings in hundreds of people who come early to watch the balloons take off durring the early-morning ascension.
I captured the event with my Canon 5D Mark II and GoPro on Saturday morning in September. While I created the images, my sister and I wandered between the ballons, trying not to trip on the ropes. We talked about how to stay present in a world full of life’s distractions.
As I reflect on this, now in November, I recall feeling happy about life that day. I was truly happy with my upcoming travels and adventures with friends. I was looking forward to new opportunities. As we watched the smiling faces of passengers climbing into the baskets, I thought about their perspective and how they viewed us from high in the clouds.
As it gets colder and I feel like I would like to float somewhere warmer, I can challenge myself to change my perspective. What a great time to be in Pennsylvania! I’m loving the fall leaves changing colors and I’m grateful for riverwalks. I have a wonderful home that I’ve created and friends who I hope to have over at my home for game nights, fire pit parties, and morning coffee conversations.
As the year comes to a close, I can see how far I’ve come, what I’ve accomplished this year, and be grateful for every experience.
To be alive is a gift. ❤
Check out the video from the festival and have a Happy Thanksgiving!
Travel. Hike. Click. Write. 