Tranquil festivity

The night is dark, silent, relaxed; people blissfully nestled in the cozy lap of slumber, just that pleasant nip in the air. As I stand on the balcony, it looks any other night - silently somber, starkly beautiful, peacefully solitary; but no, tonight is different - there is the soft glow of the dancing toony bulbs lighting up my eyes, the quiet radiance of a clutch of small red lights hanging from a window in the distance, the cheerful efforts of a neighbor putting up a bead of lights in his balcony and the silhouette of his happy family clustered around it as the lights spring to life. It is still quiet, it is still beautiful, it is still peaceful, but the starkness has been taken over by light and life, the solitude, made way for solidarity - the festive season is here, Diwali is here.