The man carried the three-year-old boy on his shoulders hurriedly pointing out to him as they made their slow and winding way through a crowd of smiling faces, the large bonfire, nearly as tall as a church tower. They stood and watched with amazement a firework display burn and spark into a myriad of colours, exploding with a roar above their raised heads. A man, meanwhile, had shinned his way like a tailless monkey to the top of the bonfire and setting it ablaze shinned back down again. The fire crackled, building up like a silent volcano and sputtering sprouted high into the firmament with a sudden bright flash, prompting a round of applause from the enthusiastic audience gathered in the cobbled street. High up on his father’s shoulders, the oohs and aahs of the cheering crowd made the young boy feel uneasy and he stopped his ears, peering upwards at the blue sky now becoming home to rampant streamers of black smoke, blotting the soft colours of the landscape, and the growing flames frightened him.
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