Mid-autumn festival through innocent eyes

Do you remember the Mid-Autumn Festivals of your childhood? Coming home from school in the afternoon, seeing Mom sitting somewhere by the porch, gently comforting you. At mealtime, when there was fish, Mom would remove the bones for you. At night, when the weather turned cold, Mom would pull the blanket over you.
 

We remember the star lanterns Mom bought, the bright moonlit nights when we ran around the yard, holding sparkling star lanterns in our hands, looking forward to hearing Mom call us home. We remember the trays of cakes and fruits placed in the middle of the house, wishing the sky would grow dark as quickly as possible so we could join the lantern procession through the neighborhood.

Back then, our Mid-Autumn Festival felt like something familiar. We did not need much. As long as there was a lantern, some mooncakes, and our loved ones by our side, that was enough to make the festival feel complete and warm.

Perhaps because we grew up with Mid-Autumn Festivals like those, yesterday, we – students of Phan Chau Trinh University – wanted to bring a little piece of our own Mid-Autumn memories to the children at the Orphan Child Care and Education Center under the Da Nang Red Cross Society. Gifts, essential supplies, and star lanterns were given to the children. We cleaned up together, played with them, and then suddenly found ourselves gazing into their innocent eyes.

Some children looked at the lanterns for a long time. Some quietly stayed close by. Some held the hand of an older student they had just met and pulled them into the game as if they had known each other for years. Children sometimes do not need much. A lantern, a hug, someone willing to sit beside them and listen to their endless stories.

One day, the children will grow up, gather many more memories, with some remembered and others forgotten. But perhaps somewhere in those memories, there will remain a September afternoon, when some older friends came to play, a bright star lantern shone in their hands, and someone sat beside them.

Your childhood Mid-Autumn Festival had Mom calling you home. For these children, their Mid-Autumn Festival had strangers by their side.

Some highlights from the event: