My brother-in-law, an awesome man,  was a pyromaniac.

He didn’t really set fire to houses but he made great fires in fireplaces, huge outside firepits and he LOVED 4th of July fireworks.  

So, he wasn’t a real pyro and in truth, he isn’t even my brother-in-law any longer but he was when this firey story took place.

He had a job that allowed him the gift of time during Fall and Winter months.

Every year, he and my sister traveled to Aruba and vacationed for a few weeks.  

While there, he always purchased huge amounts of serious fireworks, the kind not available in this country…..the real stuff, the professional stuff.

He brought extra empty pieces of luggage with him going and filled them full with fireworks coming back. 

As I mentioned, this was long ago, way before…..luggage sniffing dogs, before being forced to take off jewelry, belts and shoes walking around barefoot catching everyones athelets feet,  before having to practically undress to walk through body xray machine exposing everything including skin and bones, before putting purses, backpacks and anything being carried in a plastic box on a conveyer belt to pass through some secret dark device, and before airline personnel waved their magic wands over every lump and bump of our bodies. 

It was a time when people walked free throughout the airport, anywhere they wanted to go, including actually going ON the plane to say good bye to whomever was leaving.

It was a time when my then brother-in-law was able to pick up his luggage filled with fireworks off the conveyer belt and without any kind of worry, walk away with them.  

Every year, he was the star on 4th of July night. 

The entire neighborhood of kids and parents would gather and we’d all delight in his half-hour presentation and then finish with supervised sparklers in the street;  NO throwing them in the air no matter how cool that looked, and NO new ones til the old ones were put in the buckets of water. 

There was one particular 4th of July I hope all the kids still remember, it’s one I’ll never forget. 

On that day from beginning, through middle to end, my brother-in-law carried a large, bulging, over-stuffed, locked duffel bag with him.  

The contents were going to be the biggest and best fireworks display ever.

He didn’t want to leave them in the car til nighttime…..too hot.

He didn’t want to put them anywhere that a kid could possibly get into  so he decided his safest bet was to carry them with him, and he did.  

ALL DAY LONG!

Wherever he went, from inside to outside, the duffel bag was part of his hand that day.

It was a typical 4th of July;  the morning parade, lots of family, friends and neighbors, kids in and out of the pool all day, hot dogs, hamburgers, smores and finally it was dark and the show was about to begin.  

A new grade school was being built in the field behind the houses.  

All the dirt from the huge hole that had been dug was piled high right behind our house making a big hill which the kids played on every day.    

My brother-in-law decided the top of that hill would be a pefect spot to let off his display.  

In our back yard was the audience and the top of the hill was the stage.

My brother-in-law with the bulging bag still attached to his hand and my then-husband climbed to the top of the big hill.  

The kids were screeching with anticipation and delight.

Within minutes after the two men reached the top, the show began …..with a big bang.

A VERY BIG BANG!

The kids went wild with excitement, cheering, clapping and stamping their feet.

But within seconds of that big bang, the adults watching knew there was a problem.

The bulging bag was no longer attached to my brother-in-laws hand.  

It was a huge fireball, and it had taken on a life of its own.

Amazing things were shooting from the bag to the air and the bag kept hitting the ground and then being propelled high, back into the air.

The kids clapped and roared louder and louder.

The two men on top?

They were doing the army crawl, flat to the ground, trying to dodge the bounding bag.

When they were able, they stood up and ran like the kids did every day when playing on that hill.

By the time they reached the bottom, the amazing display had come to an end.  

I must confess, once I knew the men were gonna be safe, the sight of them first crawling in the dirt then running down that hill was too much for me.

I joined in with the kids, clapping, stomping but mostly?

I was laughing!

Somehow that bag had caught fire and well…..my brother-in-law was right…..it was 60 seconds of the biggest and best display ever.  

One that all these years later would never be forgotten.

Happy 4th everyone!