RP318 Celebrating in Color

 RP318 Celebrating in Color

Padma opened her eyes, threw off her blanket, and darted out of bed. The day that she had been looking forward to for a long time had finally arrived. It was the last full moon of the winter season. It was time to celebrate Holi, the Hindu Festival of Colors.
Padma didn't even have time to finish dressing before Sanjay beckoned to her from outside the window. In a flash, she ran downstairs and out the door. Her mother didn't even have enough time to scold her for wearing nice clothes on Holi.
Armed with water pistols and red, blue, and yellow gulal color powder, Padma and Sanjay set out. They rode their bikes through the streets searching for people to ambush. Whenever they came across someone, they would shout “Holi hai!” and shower them with water and handfuls of gulal. Eventually, they ran into a rival group of children and an all-out war broke out. When the battle was over, the warriors on both sides looked like rainbows.
They went back to Padma's apartment for lunch. Sanjay could eat with Padma's family because normal rules regarding the separation of castes aren't followed during Holi. As the two kids chewed on sweets, Padma's mom told them about where Holi came from.
Holi originated from the story of a demon king named Hiranyakashyap and his sister Holika. One day, the demon king asked his son Prahalad who the greatest god was. When Prahalad answered “Vishnu,” the Supreme god, instead of his father, the demon king became enraged and demanded that his sister Holika kill this rebellious son of his. Holika agreed, but when she tried to drag Prahalad into a pit of fire, the gods protected him and she was burnt to a crisp.
After lunch, Padma and Sanjay headed out to ambush more people with water and gulal. That night, there was a huge bonfire, and all of the locals came out to sing, dance, and enjoy a giant feast together. Later that night, back in her bed, Padma was still smiling when she finally closed her eyes. She was already looking forward to next year's Holi celebrations.