Our local ROK counterparts hosted the whole community for an evening of Lotus lantern making in preparation for Buddha's grand birthday party. The kids and I went to the temple here on base where we were welcomed with open arms by the sweetest Buddhist monks, and ROKAF members of the temple. There was palpable glee in the air-- a festive time of special celebration AND the beautiful connection of a diverse community-- and everyone who attended the event agreed that it was magical.
Well practiced in the art of making a lotus flower lantern, the Koreans were eager to assist those of us with less experience (read: all the Americans), so that our lanterns actually did end up looking like lotus flowers....and not gloppy piles of tissue paper and glue. The helpful tips (and partial re-dos) made our evening a huge success, and we left with a veritable "garden" of lantern flowers.
The next weekend, we took a now familiar journey to Seoul to witness an illuminating spectacle-- the Lotus Lantern Parade-- in celebration of Buddha's birthday. We were struggling to equate this parade with something we have in America, and the closest we could come would be Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. There were crowds, floats and giant lanterns, street vendors selling food....and did I mention, crowds? There were miles of people
lining the parade route through Seoul, and the rows were 6-8 people deep-- and that doesn't even begin to describe the number of people who actually marched in the parade. Children's hospitals, Buddhist university students, monks, temple congregations, politicians.... It was a celebration of grand proportion, and the Koreans around us were eager to include the "foreigners" in their deeply seeded traditions.
We took on this cultural adventure with a few of our friends from the Fiend family, and all the cute American kids became magnets for people handing out lanterns after the parade. Each family ended up with at least 4 lanterns to take home. Which seemed awesome. At first. Until we had to try and navigate the subway back to the hotel. 23 people. 40 lanterns. Crowded subway. More fun than you can imagine. Needless to say, it was an evening for the books. 
And, to cap off the excitement of May, we lit up the cupcakes at Osan to ring in another year of loving, living and laughing for Trinity. Joe had to fly late on her actual day, so our dear friends the Spencers came en force to make it feel like a party. Burgers on the grill and cupcakes made by her big sister made the evening DELICIOUS. She is the baby of the family with a heart full of joy, a smile that lights up the room, and a laugh that is contagious. We can't believe that she's 6 already, but are so blessed to watch her love her way through life....wherever we may be in the world!
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