Raffles Institution

English Department Term 3 - Functional Texts

English Language Worksheet 1B
Year One 2022 Texts that Instruct / Explain / Describe and Inform
Texts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 & 6

Name: ____________________________________ ( ) Class: 1__ Date:

___________

CONTENTS

Text Title

1 Up in the Air: 5 Kite Festivals Around the World

2 Kite festivals around the world turn the sky into a canvas

3 Kite fights, spirited duels up in the skies

4 A sky full of kites becomes a death trap for birds

5 Valuable Life Lessons I Learned While Flying a Kite

6 Boundless wonder. How kites let us soar

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 TEXT 1

Up in the Air: 5 Kite Festivals Around the World

Take a flight of fancy.
By NGT Staff. JANUARY 7, 2016

In Guatemala, kites are used to communicate with the deceased on All Saints’ Day. Photo:
loca4motion/Shutterstock.com

Kite-flying is not just for kids. Families around north and western India
throng terraces, rooftops, and maidans on January 14 for Makar
Sankranti, to welcome the onset of spring with soaring kites.
Guatemalans connect with their deceased relatives via kite strings on All
Saints’ Day on November 1. Almost all of us have spent a few moments
tugging against the wind to hoist a kite or swipe a neighbour’s string, but
kite-flying is also a serious hobby. Across the world, kite enthusiasts toil
over innovative designs to create spectacular visions in the sky that are
only rivalled by the imagination. With Makar Sankranti around the corner,
we are turning the spotlight on kite festivals around the world that are
worth travelling for. Join in the fun but remember that kite-flying can be
injurious to birds, even humans who get entangled in the string, so use
cotton thread instead of the abrasive manja that is coated with powdered
glass, pick open grounds, and remove any kite strings that are caught in
trees.

SUMPANGO, GUATEMALA
All Saints’ Day or Dia de Todos Santos (on November 1) is a colourful
affair in the Guatemalan town of Sumpango. Locals use gigantic kites in
riotous colours as vehicles to connect with their deceased relatives and
pay their respects. The kites are only made of natural materials like rice
paper and bamboo and can stretch up to 20m in diameter. According to

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tradition, deceased spirits are able to identify their living family members
by the designs and colours of each kite and are believed to
communicate with them via the kite’s thread. The kites are first put on
display before being hoisted into the sky. At the end of the day, they are
burned near cemeteries, allowing the dead to return to their resting
places. If the kites do not burn, locals say that the spirit is not ready to
return to the afterlife. There is no mourning; rather the community
celebrates the departed with music, processions, and church services.

When Wed November 1, 2017

AHMEDABAD, INDIA

Ahmedabad’s International Kite Festival has been a tourist favourite for many years. Photo
courtesy Gujarat Tourism

Come Uttarayan, Gujarat’s skies are a mosaic of kites, big and small,
traditional, and fantastical, all fighting for space. This is one of the state’s
major holidays, and while kites are flown across Gujarat, the highlight of
the event is the International Kite Festival held at the riverfront in
Ahmedabad. Since 1989, expert kite makers and flyers have been
flocking to the city to show off their creations every January and cut
competing kites out of the sky. You can spend hours gazing up at
gigantic whales float past box kites and Chinese flying dragons, while
munching on delicious Gujarati snacks—just our kind of day.

When Sun January 8-Sat January 14, 2017

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 Kite enthusiasts flock to Portsmouth to compete with the best. Photo: Bill/Flickr/Creative
Commons (http://bit.ly/1jxQJMa)

PORTSMOUTH, ENGLAND

The city of Portsmouth (1.5hr from London) hosts one of the world’s
biggest kite parties: the Unbeatable Car Portsmouth International Kite
Festival. For two days, ferocious dragons, larger-than-life superheroes,
even giant ducks dot the city’s skyline at Southsea Common, with the
Isle of Wight in the background. Workshops, stalls, and children’s
activities are part of the celebrations.

When: August. Dates to be announced.

BALI, INDONESIA

The annual Bali Kite Festival started out as a ritual—kites were used to
carry prayers heavenwards for a good harvest. But over the years, the
event has evolved into a thriving competition that draws locals from
around the Indonesian island every July. Kite designs are usually based
on one of three traditional motifs: the bebean (fish), janggan (bird) or
pecukan (leaves). Often, a colour combination will also be picked, such
as black, white and red. These massive kites, which can go up to 10m in
length, understandably require teams to hold them aloft. Prizes are given
for the design, the ability to launch a kite, and how long it flies in the sky.
Adding a touch of local flavour are musical bands that accompany each
team and play throughout the event on Sanur Beach.

When: Between July and August. Dates to be announced.

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 Workshops and wacky kites at the Festival of the Winds. Photo: Eva
Rinaldi/Flickr/Creative Commons (http://bit.ly/1jxQJMa)

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA

Sydney’s Festival of the Winds, held on the beautiful Bondi Beach,

makes for a great family outing. Every September, kite enthusiasts
gather to show off their dazzling creations. Want to join in the fun but do
not have a kite? There are often workshops at the event that help you
make your own. Food stalls, puppet shows, and a kite parade ensure a
great day at the beach. At the Festival of Winds, unlike the other events,
there is no element of competition.

When: September. Dates to be announced.

Source: http://www.natgeotraveller.in/up-in-the-air-5-kite-festivals-around-the-world/

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 TEXT 2

TRAVEL

Kite festivals around the world turn the sky into a canvas
Lachmi Deb Roy. JANUARY 17, 2018 16:48 IST

Chariots, prowling tigers or even android robots... kite festivals around the globe
turn the sky into a canvas with innovative-shaped flying objects streaming across
its wide expanse

Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, wait! It is a kite delightfully gliding in the sky.

And if you attend the annual International Kite Festival in Ahmedabad, you
will know that flying kites is not a mere hobby restricted to kids. Since 1989,
the Gujarat State Government has been organising the festival around this
time of the year. It heralds the arrival of spring, and the whole State is in a
festive mood. Jenu Devan, Commissioner of Tourism, Gujarat, says, “The
International Kite Festival is one of the most important and colourful festivals
here. Each year, thousands of kite flyers partake in the celebrations and
carry back wonderful memories with them. The local people also benefit from
it because they receive great livelihood opportunities.”

Kite-flying essentially started as a part of Makar Sankranti celebrations, as a

salutation to the sun god, but over a period of time, it has become an
occasion where serious kite flyers from all around the globe participate.

Kites in different shapes, colours, sizes, and concepts take over the sky. It is
a visual treat for the spectator, as the sky is dotted with vibrant flying objects
shaped like the Rubik’s cube, aeroplanes, dragons, traditional masks,

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sunflowers... It is also a display of how kite-making skills have evolved over
the years. From delicate ones made of paper and wooden sticks, they now
use flexible materials that make them more resilient. Some kites are so big
that they have to be carried by 20 people.

The recently concluded festival in Ahmedabad (January 7 to 14) was

celebrated at the Sabarmati Riverfront. An estimated 535 kite fliers
participated, which included 96 from 18 different states, 149 kite fliers from
44 countries, and around 290 from different parts of the State. The crowd
draws visitors from within the country and abroad as well. This year,
approximately 7,000 spectators were present at the festival. Because of the
huge participation of the kite flyers, the kite industry flourished with a turnover
of ₹615 crores.

Yarin Cheang, a kite flyer from Cambodia, says, “I have been participating in
this festival for the last five years. I make sure I bring my best kites with me.
This year, it has the painting of a Buddhist deity on it.”

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There is also participation from numerous kite clubs across the country. For
Ratan Singh from Uttar Pradesh, it is a family affair. They unfailingly
participate every year. He says, “We have kites which date back to the pre-
Independence era and have been passed down by my father. We make our
own kites with a lot of dedication and invest a lot of time and money in it.”

In addition to the spectacular display and competitions, the event every year
has kite-making workshops, 3D stalls, adventure activities, a craft bazaar and
food kiosks offering local food. And not just Gujarat, kites have become
popular with enthusiasts all over the world.

So, do not worry if you have missed this edition of the fest here; you can still
join in the fun of kite-flying festivals around the globe. Make sure you have a
unique kite with you, as the other enthusiasts toil for months to come up with
a whole range of creative eye-catching designs. Along with the festival, also
explore the tradition, art, and culture that the host country has to offer.

Around the world

Weifang, China

Weifang is also known as the ‘World’s Kite Capital’. This kite festival is held
in the month of April and is the biggest in the world. The city is decked up
with beautiful lanterns and streamers. The most common ones that are seen
in the sky are the dragon kites.

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Bali, Indonesia

The Bali Kite Festival started as a prayer to the gods for a good harvest. This
festival happens every July and has now become a fun competition. The sky
resembles a mosaic with kites of different colours and shapes. But the most
common ones are the traditional motifs of fish, birds and leaves. You will find
sketches of Hindu gods up in the air. The event takes place on Sanur beach.

Sydney, Australia

Heading down under in the month of September? The golden Bondi Beach
plays host to the Festival of the Winds. Master the art of kite-making at their
workshops. Deepa Gala, an Indian settled in Australia, who had come for the
kite festival, says, “The other attraction of the Australian kite festival is the
puppet show.” It is one of the most happening spring events in the whole
continent.”

Washington DC, USA

Called the ‘Blossom Kite Festival’, it’s held in the resort city of Long Beach in
the month of April. Initially, it was called the Smithsonian Kite Festival. It is
where kite flyers flaunt their skills and creativity. The Rokkaku Battle and Hot
Tricks Showdown are the highlights of the event.

Source: https://www.thehindu.com/life-and-style/travel/heres-a-look-at-kite-festivals-
around-the-globe/article22456765.ece

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 TEXT 3

Kite fights, spirited duels up in the skies

By Chandramohan Nair / MAY 13 2017

The edgy excitement of kite-flying, taming the wind that sustains the
lift and fending of the competitors

Changa chait! The piercing and excited cry, literally ‘the kite
is cut’, rang out on a pleasant afternoon in the Indian Aid
Mission compound in Kathmandu. A kite had just been cut
and vanquished after a spirited aerial duel and was now
drifting downwards.

Half a dozen kids in the 9-12 age group, all peering into the
sky, hands cupped over eyes, willed the kite to land safely
within the compound. When it was clear the kite would do so,
there were exuberant whoops and then a mad frenzy to
catch the kite before it touched down.

This was a spectacle repeated many times during the

fortnight of Dashain, the auspicious festival in Nepal. Kite-
flying was an integral part of the festival, and the skies would
be full of them — in all shapes, sizes and colours. Some
people believed that kite-flying was a way of requesting the
rain god Indra not to send down any further rain and to bring
prosperity to the kite-fliers. Others believed kite-flying was a
way of contacting and honouring ancestors or of guiding the

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recently deceased to heaven.

I was part of that group of youngsters and the thrills of being

part of two kite-flying seasons in the mid-1960s are fresh in
my mind. Initially we were happy just watching the kite fights
and running to reclaim those that landed in our compound.
Sometimes there would be heartbreak when a gust of wind
would take the kite to a neighbouring property, much to the

delight of the children there. On other occasions the kite

would get entangled in the branch of a tree or come to rest
on the roof of one of the compound buildings. The best
climbers in the group would then have to undertake the
somewhat hazardous act of retrieving the kite.

Later on, when we were able to cajole our parents into giving
us some pocket money we proudly became kite-flyers
ourselves. The kites we could afford were small and the
string ordinary and short in length, but it was always
exhilarating to get the kite airborne. The take-off required
perfect coordination between the person holding and
releasing it and the flyer who would then have to deftly pull
and loosen the string in turns.

During my second year in Kathmandu, we had become

confident enough to take part in kite fights. We got kites, a
wooden lattai to spool the string and lengths of manja string
coated with powdered glass to make them abrasive. We had
to be careful not to cut ourselves with the string. Mastering
the lattai also took time.

On a clear Saturday afternoon, we were finally ready for our

first kite fight. There were no fighter kites in the vicinity when
we launched our lovely green-and-yellow kite. We took turns
with the lattai and soon friendly winds blowing northwards
had

taken ours to a vertiginous height. After an hour it appeared

there was no one to challenge us and we prepared to pull

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down our kite.

It was then that we noticed, to our east, a large red kite

gaining height rapidly. The speed and smoothness of the
ascent indicated the flyer was skilful and experienced. The
kite seemed a good distance away and we kept admiring it
while pulling down our own. All of a sudden, the red kite
made a sharp move towards ours. There was no mistaking
the menace and intent. We had our hearts in our mouths; our
first fight was going to be against a professional. But we
were a plucky and wily bunch and game for it.

With the attacker closing in, we loosened our string fast. A

kite gets cut when the string is taut and the point of contact is
static, so the trick was to let our kite float without losing
control. We veered our kite sharply away signalling a desire
not to engage. The evasive manoeuvres continued for some
time. The attacker, sensing that we might get away without
engaging in combat, made a reckless bid to intercept us. The
red kite spun out of control. All we had to do was to bring our
kite down fast and across it to make the cut. A win in our first
kite fight was unbelievable and the jubilant shouts of
‘Changa Chait’ echoed in our compound!

Source: https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/open-page/kite-fights-spirited-duels-up-
in-the-skies/article18446840.ece

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 TEXT 4

A sky full of kites becomes a death trap for birds

by Manon Verchot on 16 January 2019

A pigeon entangled in strewn manjha used to fly kites during the kite flying festival,
Makar Sankranti. Photo by Kartik Chandramouli.

Chinese manjha – a synthetic kite string coated in glass or metal –

was banned across India in 2017. But every year conservation
organisations continue to rescue thousands of birds entangled or
injured by these kite strings. In 2018, 4,000 birds were rescued in
Gujarat by the state forest department after the mass kite flying during
the Makar Sankranti festival, forest department officials told the media
last year. Most of these cases were reported in the city of Ahmedabad.

Sankranti, celebrated in January, is just one of the occasions

throughout the year when people bring out their kites. During
Independence Day in August, the skies once again are filled. And it is
the density of kites and strings that becomes dangerous for birds —
the skies become a death trap. The most common victims are pigeons
and kites, which frequent heavily populated areas. Many other species,
like parrots and endangered vultures, are also at risk.

Although the NGT banned manjha that caused these fatal injuries,

exceptions were made for manjha that could be considered
biodegradable. That included manjha made with isabgol husk, wood
powder or gumchi (Indian liquorice).

“Since all these ingredients are natural/herbs/grains/leaves they are

fully biodegradable. Furthermore, they do not lend any strength to the
cotton string to cause injuries to anyone, including birds and animals,”

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the NGT judgment stated.

Kite flying is a tradition during Makar Sankranti and other cultural

festivals where kites, usually made from light weight paper and
bamboo, are flown and people engage in competition to ‘cut’ down
other kites. The strings often contain abrasives like glass powder, for
easily cutting the opponent’s kite. Cities like Ahmedabad in Gujarat and
Jaipur in Rajasthan are among the most popular destinations for the
kite flying festival. Cotton strings are considered safer than nylon not
just because they are biodegradable, but because they break more
easily. The reality, though, is that any form of kite flying hurts birds,
according to Wasim Akram, manager of special projects at Wildlife
SOS.

“The bird does get injured if something obstructs its path,” said Akram.
Plain cotton strings, which are legal, can disorient birds and make them
fall from great heights, he added. “Birds are fragile.”

For the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India, who

brought the issue of manjha to the National Green Tribunal, the
partial manjha ban is still a problem.

“Even after nearly two years of the ban, bird injuries and deaths have
continued,” said Nikunj Sharma, associate director of policy at PETA
India. “We continue to work to see all forms of manjha banned as they
are all equally dangerous.”

‘Biodegradable’ manjha aside, enforcing the nylon and synthetic

manjha ban is a challenge. The string is still found in markets across
the country, conservation groups say. For birds, this can result in deep
cuts or even loss of their wings.

Injuries do not just happen when the kites are up in the air. When kites
are abandoned or get stuck in trees, birds can get their feet caught up
in the strings. In some cases, they lose their entire foot. “The birds can
still fly, so we’re not able to catch them [to help them],” said Akram.
“We can only watch them suffer.”

In many cases, the birds do not survive, according to PETA India

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reports. Beyond campaigning for the government to enforce
synthetic manjha bans, all conservation organisations can do is
prepare for Sankranti and Independence Day. Every year, they know
they are likely to receive many cases. Part of that preparation involves
campaigns that educate so people understand the dangers of kite
flying.
“It’s an education campaign that should happen in schools, because
children are the main consumers,” said Geeta Seshamani, co-founder
of Friendicoes SECA, an animal rescue society.

According to Seshamani, it is children who convince their parents to

buy synthetic manjha. If children are educated about the dangers,
there would not be as much demand. PETA India collaborated with
students in Ahmedabad to hand over kites in exchange for games that
will not hurt birds.

Some conservation organisations also train potential rescuers.

The Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) and the International Fund for Animal
Welfare (IFAW) brought together 80 members of their Emergency
Relief Network, which includes wildlife veterinarians, forest officials,
biologists and volunteers, for an avian rescue and rehabilitation
workshop, just days before Sankranti. The rescue teams compare
notes and share best practices because there are certain factors
rescuers have to be wary of. Some of the worst injuries to birds can
happen when rescuers try to untangle them from manjha. The same
advice applies to the public. Though people may mean well trying to
help an injured bird, they may do more harm than good. Many
organisations, including WTI, Wildlife SOS, and Friendicoes have
helplines for emergencies like these.

Last year, WTI assisted centres that rescued 1600 birds in Rajasthan
and Gujarat, all casualties of kite flying. Not all of them survived. Some
were permanently damaged and require lifetime care after having their
wings amputated. This year, around the recent Makar Sankranti
festival in Rajasthan, WTI and IFAW cared for pelicans, kites and
pigeons tangled in manjha. One of the pigeons lost a wing entirely.

Still, some conservationists are hopeful that things are getting better.
“There has been some change, people are more aware now,” said
Akram, of Wildlife SOS. The forest department is also increasingly

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putting pressure on officials to enforce the NGT ban, he added. The
Gujarat Forest Department also reported an improvement. The 4,000
birds they rescued in January 2018, were half the number from the
previous year where they had rescued 8,000 birds, they told the media.

Nonetheless, kite sellers say people will buy kites in time for
Independence Day, and that sales will pick up from March, around the
Holi festival. And even if people opt for cotton instead of synthetic
during Independence Day, the only way birds and humans alike will be
fully safe, experts say, is if people stop kite flying altogether. “We
recommend people to play safer games instead of fighting/cutting
kites,” said Sharma, of PETA India.

Groups like PETA India and WTI understand that it is not always
possible to stop people from wanting to take part in kite flying festivals,
so they have some tips to try and minimise the risk. They recommend
people opt for ‘saddi’, or plain, cotton with no additional coating. They
also recommend people avoid flying kites in the morning or evening,
when birds are more actively flying around. The advice is particularly
relevant during Sankranti, which falls around the time when migratory
birds pass through north India. That includes species like the greylag
goose, bar-headed goose, the common teal and the northern shoveler
which fly all the way from north and central Asia. Conservationists
hope that if mass kite flying will not stop, then at least the damage can
be minimised.

Source: https://india.mongabay.com/2019/01/a-sky-full-of-kites-becomes-a-death-trap-
for-birds/

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 TEXT 5

Valuable Life Lessons I Learned While Flying a Kite

On seizing the day and holding things loosely.
By Lance Baker. Mar 30 2020

It was a windy spring day. It was the type of windy that overturned lawn
furniture, downed small branches, and howled through the trees. Despite
the wind, the morning sun streaming through the trees was warm and
inviting. My family and I planned to go for a walk but ended up spending
the day flying a kite instead. Later that same evening, I was reflecting on
that kite-flying experience and realized it was full of meaningful life
applications. These are the lessons I came away with.

1. Match the Task to the Conditions. Before we left for our walk, I
decided to fold up a large blue tarp that had been set out to dry the day
before. It billowed in the wind as I tried to wrestle it into a more
manageable form. “My kite!” My daughter exclaimed. “It is the perfect day
to fly my kite!” The ballooning tarp reminded my daughter of her kite. And
she was right. It was the perfect day to fly a kite — and a terrible day to fold
a tarp. There are several old sayings that remind us to take advantage of
favourable conditions. However, I think many of us have become
accustomed to being the dictators of our schedules. We forget that we
sometimes must drop our plans to take up the task that makes the most
sense given the current circumstances. There are certain times when my
kids are feeling wild and are in the mood to wrestle, laugh hysterically, or
play something imaginative. I cannot reschedule those things or plan them
in advance. I must go with the momentum of the moment, or it will be lost. I
cannot ask them to return to that silly playful mode they were in two hours
prior. Similarly, you cannot say, “I will fly a kite on Thursday afternoon
around 2:00 p.m.” The intent and desire may be there, but the conditions
will likely not be. My daughter was right. We scratched our plans for a walk
and headed to the park with the kite. There are unique opportunities,
miraculous moments, and sublime occasions when you must drop
everything you planned on doing to do something else — because it simply
makes sense. If you only wait to do things on your own time, you might end
up dragging your kite across the ground. The wind you needed to lift it into
the air will be long gone and who knows when the ideal conditions will
return.

2. Give Yourself a Lot of Slack. Our first few attempts at getting the kite

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into the air just were not working. The kite would rise and then do an
immediate nose-dive. A quick Google search suggested that we start with a
much longer lead line — thirty feet or so. This worked perfectly! The kite
would catch a stream of wind and lift beautifully into the air. We realized
that the shorter line we had started with was not allowing the kite to ebb
and flow with the wind. It would rise quickly, but the short line gave too
much control to the person holding the string. The kite needed to be free. I
know I tend to hold on to things too closely sometimes. I do it because I
think I am in control, but I am preventing things from taking flight and
developing a life of their own. If we want our family or our creative projects
to take flight, then we must hold them loosely. We must give them a lot of
slack. Help them get into the air, yes, but there comes a point when the kite
flies on its own with minimal anchoring support from the one holding the
string.

3. Stop Tinkering and Go for It. Our kite has a little adjustment section
where you can tweak the pitch. Each time the kite came crashing down, my
wife and I would tinker with the pitch of the kite thinking that was the
problem more than our technique. Of course, the more we tinkered with it,
the more we missed out on nice gusts of wind that could have helped get
the kite into the air. It is easy to tinker. Tinkering can give you the feeling of
progress or productivity even if it accomplishes very little. You feel like you
are preparing for that moment when things will finally take flight, but the
reality is that you are often procrastinating or finding scapegoats for our
lack of success. There is a time to adjust and tweak things, but you
eventually have to stop tinkering and go for it. There comes a point when
you just have to run into the wind and hope that the kite takes flight.

4. Hold Things Loosely. After many more attempts, we were getting

some better results. Everyone took turns trying their own techniques and
approaches. We were able to get the kite high up in the air for a few
moments but then it would repeatedly turn and do a nosedive straight to
the ground. Another quick Google search suggested that when the kite
starts to nosedive, we should let more slack out on the line. Instead, we
had been pulling the line when the kite started nosediving thinking it would
help give the kite lift. It turns out that was only making the nosediving
worse. This was the last trick we needed. Letting the line out further during
a nosedive worked because it gave the kite a chance to catch more lift or
pick up a new gust of wind. Pulling the string harder only accelerated the
loss. This is how it goes, though, isn’t it? When things take a turn for the

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worse, we panic and grasp to hold on tighter. We pull the string to try and
regain what was lost but it only seems to exacerbate the situation. Though
counter-intuitive, holding things loosely when they seem to be spiralling out
of control is what keeps everything up in the air.

5. All Flights Come Down, Eventually. As we got better with our

technique, we were able to keep the kite up longer but it would always
come down again at some point. Sometimes it was because the wind died
down and other times it was, perhaps, a failure to hold things loosely.
Regardless, all good flights come to an end. By this, I mean that life moves
in phases. There are seasons when the air feels stale and stagnant.
Nothing seems to be moving. Then, a new front comes through and
suddenly everything shifts. The wind starts to howl, and we can get out and
let something fly. We do what we can to get our kite into the air and keep it
flying or a while. But eventually, it will  come down again. The wind will
become still once again and there will be a period of waiting before the
next run. The gusts have since died down and the kite has been returned
to its shelf in the garage. But when the conditions are right again, I will try
to remember that the key to a good flight is to seize the moment and hold
things loosely.

Source: https://medium.com/assemblage/valuable-life-lessons-i-learned-while-flying-a-kite-
12b9849d1de

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 TEXT 6

Boundless wonder. How kites let us soar

Nic O'Neill | TEDxSnoIsleLibraries

The first time I flew a kite I was about the age of five and I was
standing atop the hill in gasworks Park in downtown Seattle.
My mom's boyfriend was flying this two-line kite. It was zipping
and diving across the sky and it looked like so much fun I had
to try. These kites are a bit of a workout for a fully grown adult
and here he is handing it off to a 40-pound uncoordinated child
and let me just say this was a recipe for disaster. Within a
second, I am launched airborne and much to my surprise, a
mere second or two after being handed the kite, I am one big
mess of kite’s strings and skinned up knees at the bottom of
the hill but for me, it felt like I had been soaring for hours and
that I had flown over the city for miles. My mom came rushing
over to me expecting to find a child battered and crying and
there I am and I'm laughing … I can't stop grinning and I
asked, ‘Can I do it again?’ because for me, in that briefest of
moments, I was completely free! That was the closest to flying
I have ever been. As the years would go on, I have fallen more
and more in love with kites and I still get that same sense of
freedom and flying whether I'm standing on the beach and I'm
making my kite do loops or other acrobatics or if I'm being
pulled up of a snow-covered mountain on my skis or across a
beach at incredible speeds, I still get that same sense of
enjoyment and flying if I'm standing with my friends and we're
flying like a flock of birds. Over the past decade I've come to
discover that there is this whole other world of kites, a world
that is filled with stunning artwork and fantastical shapes that I
never could have imagined would fly and my memories are
filled with thousands of people that have been smiling when
they first flown a kite. You take someone who is naturally shy
afraid and introverted and you hand them a kite and within 5
seconds you see a change. You see them start to smile and
the chances are they're talking non-stop, and you can't get the

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kite away from them and that happiness is so pure and so free
that it spreads. It is said that our most heartfelt communication
happens with our body language and if I can trust what I see in
those first five seconds, well, I see someone allowing
themselves to be free. They're releasing all the frustration and
tension they might have and they're letting go of those things
that might be holding them down. Their shoulders relaxed and
their head tips upward and this genuine smile spreads across
their face. What is truly exceptional is that allowing ourselves
to experience that freedom through kite-flying radically
changes our lives. It not only changes how we see ourselves -
it changes how we see the world, it changes how we see
various things around us and it even changes the way we
innovate. Not many would be surprised to discover that it was
playing around with kites that led Hargraves Alexander
Graham Bell and the Wright brothers into aviation. Our basic
understanding of how planes could fly, what shapes would
work best and simple aerodynamics comes from kites. We've
supposedly learned about electricity and radio wave
propagation and kites have even helped build the bridge at
Niagara Falls. Several militaries for several hundreds of years
have been using kites for enemy observation and signalling
and they have served as the first platforms for large aerial
photographs. Surprisingly, kites have even saved the lives of
pilots lost at sea for more than a thousand years. Various
cultures across this world have used kites for religious and
daily rituals, whether it's the Micronesians using kites to fish or
the large memorial kites in Guatemala honouring the dead and
we may continue to think of kites as a children's toy or a relic of
a less technologically advanced past but kites are helping us to
discover new frontiers here on earth and beyond. Kite power is
seriously being looked at for renewable energy and the same
principles of flying that kite here on the surface of the earth are
the same principles of fluid dynamics that will allow us to
harness power by flying kites underwater. As we branch out
across the solar system we will be using large kite to harness
the winds of solar radiation, providing an infinite resource for

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propulsion. But kites are not just about technological advances;
they are also about helping us discover new things within
ourselves and they're helping us to unlock new potential and to
reconnect pathways we thought were previously broken. A few
years ago I was at a kite festival with my partner a fellow avid
kite flier and this is kite festival is kind of special - it's an indoor
kite festival. An indoor kite flying is this fun special niche in the
kite community that is oddly enough, the most accessible way
for people to get into kite flying. We don't need fans or wind
generators; we just use super lightweight material and through
the movements of our body, we can get a kite to fly glide and
dance. It was a few years before this that my partner had
introduced me to the power and expression that comes from
indoor kite flying and ever since then I was hooked. So there
we are at this festival and just like in years past, this festival
would bring in a group of local folks for us to teach how to fly.
This year, it was a group of folks that had been affected by
traumatic brain injury. Now, some in the group were just
beginning their path to recovery and there's varying abilities
and varying impairments in this group. There's this one
gentleman, a firefighter. A few years prior, he had been hurt on
the job and he had been unable to walk unassisted since his
accident. One of the fliers brought him out onto the floor and
handed him a glider kite. Glider kites require minimal input and
they don't require a lot of movement across the floor and in a
way, they forced the flier to be completely focused on that
moment in time. So after a few minutes, the firefighter’s flying
and his friend notices he's not holding on to his walker and he
pulls the walker away. The firefighter takes a step and another
step and another. It took a minute for all of us there to
recognize what was happening, what we were witnessing. For
the first time in five years, this firefighter walked unassisted.
Kite flying transcends all of the boundaries that we may
willingly or unwillingly place upon ourselves. It transcends
cultural differences, religion, language, physical ability, and
age. There is literally a kite out there for everybody - whether
you want the athleticism of power kites and kite boarding, or

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the fast paced-action of a sport kite, or maybe you want to be
artistic and design something new and creative. Kites allow us
to express ourselves on both our physical and our creative side
simultaneously and kite flying, in its very nature, encourages
us not to see one failed launch, one crashed landing or one
tangled set of lines as a reason to not fly again. So I invite you
to go find a kite and let it fly. Watch as you change. Watch as
the world around you begins to look different. Take note of that
feeling you have in that very moment and know that there are
billions of people around the world and throughout time that
have experienced that same exact emotion and then take that
kite and hand it off to someone else and witness the
transformation in them. Thank-you.

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qADGVBNxfQ&t=6s

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