Our Little Fireworks Photographer
We were keeping an open mind, based our on prior experiences with fireworks displays. Babyboy is uncomfortable in crowds and overwhelmed by loud noises. Hubby has had to accompany the tortured child away from Fourth of July spectacles in the past.
Every year at the end of June, an incredibly generous local foundation hosts a free outdoor family festival on a wide expanse of protected open land in our town, very close to our house. Music, food, bouncy houses, a massive sandbox, vendors and entertainers galore precede a first- rate fireworks display. We’ve never before attempted to attend.
This year, we went. Maybe because the space was so familiar already, and because we ran into many friends, neighbors and classmates, and perhaps also because the field is on a huge hill with the vistas of the river and distant city beyond, Babyboy did well. He didn’t feel trapped or overwhelmed. He wanted to stay for the fireworks.
There was plenty of space right up close to the barrier fence at the front of the audience, which was a good choice for us. Babyboy could easily forget about the thousand other human beings sitting behind us, and focus on the show.
With the first explosions, I was worried, as Babyboy covered his ears and cowered a bit. But when he saw me hold up my phone to take a family selfie, he asked if he could take pictures. I handed it to him, and after that, we were all good.
I think that having the camera as a “filter” through which to witness the event, plus the “job” as photographer, made it an entirely different experience for him. He concentrated and focused and snapped over three hundred photos of the twenty- plus minute display!
Hubby got this image of our photog, which I love:
Here’s how Babyboy saw things:
He was very proud, and declared the festival “one of the best things ever”.
Many many thanks to the Copeland Family Foundation, the Trustees of Reservations, the town of Milton MA, and all the local sponsors and vendors who made this incredible free event possible.