The Magic of Letting Go

One of the best things in life is the ability to let things go. If we can release the past and usher in the new, we can grow and learn and have better lives. Six years ago, Josh and I were in Thailand and serendipitously happened to book our stay during the Lao Krathong Festival. This festival fills the sky with paper lanterns the size of large trash cans, and fills the rivers with banana boat floats (called Krathongs) decorated with flowers, candles and incense. The point of this festival is to let go of the negative things in your life and invite in good fortune. Six years ago when we were at Lao Krathong, I let go of the previous chapter of my life, and wished for the fortune of a child. Watching my Krathong meander down the river, lit for wishes of a baby, with the backdrop of a sky filled with paper lanterns that moved like dancing stars, was one of the most magical evenings of my life. When we got home, I became pregnant immediately.

Skip ahead six years to the Kear World Tour. We knew that we wanted to experience the Lao Krathong Festival once again, so we made it part of the itinerary. We’d been telling Luna the story of us at Lao Krathong years ago and how memorable our experience had been. Our friend David flew out to meet us in Thailand and our experience this time was just as magical.

Chiang Mai is made up of about 1 million people, and they pour into the streets in the evenings after most of the heat from the days has burnt away. There are parades with floats shimmering with colorful glittery lotus flowers, which Luna told me reminded her of “the Fairy lands she has in her head.” We lit lanterns as individuals and as a family. Whenever we let them go into the sky, Luna exclaimed, “Goodbye! We will never forget you!” and she’s right. For how could we forget a night like this? Magic is in the air, stirring with the dreams and wishes of people in both the sky and the river. I have never experienced a place where so many people are intentionally letting things go at once. The air is electric with desire for the future, but there is also a sweet intimacy as people perch along the muddy river, side by side, letting their little Krathongs go, washing their troubles away.