Last night while my husband and I watched fireworks
lighting the sky and reflecting across the water of the lagoon, I began to
wonder about the word itself.
Firework. Does the fire make the sky perform work, or does
the explosive do the work? That takes me back to my tedious years spent in
college physics and chemistry classes, considering atomic electron orbital
patterns, molecular reactions and bonding. I’m shrugging that off fast—too much
work for my brain. All this work, work, work really doesn’t seem like a
celebration, which we usually associate with the term.
I’ve been thinking sideways, since the fun, the spectacle,
the magic is not found in the verb, but the noun form of the word. The ninth
listed definition of work as a noun is a decoration
or ornamentation. Firecraft, firedesign, fireart, firemagic—all sound
so much more enthralling, just like what we saw last night to ring in a
wonderful start to a new year. I hope yours was just as enchanting—firemagicful!
Tea Leaf Tales is a series of original ten-sentence short stories by Marsha A. Moore, relating to photos/scenes that resonate with her.
