For the past 28 years, people from the east Bay Area and beyond converge at the Berkeley Kite Festival to escape the summer heat, lay out their blankets or set-up their lawn chairs, have a picnic, and spend the day with their families, friends and loved ones by flying a kite or simply gazing at the sky to watch kites of all colors, shapes and sizes dance in the wind.

To see a kite in the sky as big as a two-story house or as long as a passenger train is quite an amazing sight.  Equally mesmerizing are the aerodynamic kites featured in the professional Solo and Team Kite Ballet competitions.  With a quick tug here and a strong pull there, the kites danced to music, gliding effortlessly in the sky in perfect choreography.

On the opposite side of the field were children flying their own hand-made paper kites, decorated with their own crayon drawings. The excitement and pride in their faces as they launched their own creations to float carelessly in the wind is certainly a memorable highlight of the festival.

I saw glee in the eyes of the littlest ones happily bouncing on their parents’ laps as they watched rainbow-colored kites and gigantic kites in the shape of a dog, an octopus, and a fish gazing down at them from the sky.

I observed couples—young and young at heart—walking arm in arm or locked in a gentle embrace as they enjoyed the aerial artistry.

There was the cheerful banter among a group of friends struggling to keep their kite from repeatedly crashing to the ground.

It was a perfect day to fly a kite—and to let the wind blow all your cares and worries away.

Who knew that an invisible element like wind is capable of inviting us to celebrate togetherness, fun, friendship, family, laughter, love, talent and creativity?