Holi or the Festival of Colors is a Hindu Spring festival that takes place in India, Nepal and other parts of Asia. In white, hundreds of people come together and share music, joy, love, movement, and visual excitement. We were all late. Carmen, Reem & I ran to Carmen’s place as fast and furious as the torrential rain. Each person had to wear white clothes as if they were sheets. We looked like ghosts in white, except that we didn’t have any makeup on.

Abrar & Philippa offered to drive us and together we went to the event. Once we arrived at St.Julians it felt as if we were stuck in a room of four white walls with no one else in sight. Around 6pm, the door remained closed. People were still waiting. Security guards came in different shapes. One looked like an apple, while the other was as big as a large door.

We were all standing at the entrance of the beach and waiting for it to open. We wondered how we’d get in without our IDs. Carmen, the only 18-year-old in our group, was at the Holi Colors party. Although we’d never been to one, we had seen photos and videos. It was an experience that we didn’t expect. Malta is a very neutral place. It’s made up of old buildings, seas, trees and limestone. All the colors are basically the exact same. As I closed my eyelids, I saw swirling color.

They marched in, attacked the orange and then we heard them braying. We entered together, and they didn’t check us. It was almost like a miraculous event. Carmen screamed with excitement. Reem said “Raghed Careful”, I thought at first it was rain, but when I turned around I saw different colors on me. It was amazing.

As we walked, we saw the stage, which had a DJ and large speakers. There were also cameras. There were people of different ages and skin tones, but what brought them together was their white clothing. As the DJ counts down from 10-1, everyone puts their colors up like they are in jail and have been released. I love hearing people laugh and chat quietly as if it were a class.

michaellang

Michael Lang is a 33-year-old professor and blogger who is passionate about writing. He has been blogging for over 7 years and has written for various online publications. Michael is also a seasoned professor who has taught at the college level for over a decade. He is currently a professor of English at a community college in the Midwest.