At many summer music festivals, an evening candle-lighting ceremony is an integral—and much-anticipated—part of the festivities. I attended a festival many years ago where a candle ceremony kicked off the event on a Friday night. Tens of thousands of candles were distributed to everyone in the crowd (a feat in itself) while several singers kept us entertained.
When everyone in the audience finally held a small, white candle, a speaker came onstage and explained that all the candles would be lit from the flame of his single candle at the stage. Each person in the crowd would have their candle lit by the flame of the person nearest them and, in turn, they were to light the candle of the person next to them. Each person’s lit candle represented their light in the world.
A band took the stage and began playing a heartfelt song. Standing near the rear of the crowd, I saw the tiny orbs of light slowly multiply from the front of the stage like a growing swarm of fireflies. With great anticipation, I saw the wave of little lights grow closer and closer until they reached the people just in front of me, the amber glow from the candles illuminating each of their faces softly and warmly from below. With a wordless smile, the woman next to me stepped close, holding the hot flame of her candle to the cold wick of mine. When the flame held, she stepped away and I passed my flame to the next person; I had become a link in the chain of light, and I stared in awe toward the stage where, from the power of a single tiny flame, the once-dark arena now glowed softly from the lights of thousands of candles.
It was a beautiful illustration of our connection to—and influence on—others. I’m sure we can recall times when the flame of our spirit was ignited, ignored, or perhaps extinguished by the people around us. May we always aspire to be brightly burning flames who share their light.