The winter holiday season is a popular time for people to decorate their homes, specifically with light decorations. One of the less common–but very pretty- decorations are luminaries.
Luminaries became popular around 300 years ago in villages along the Rio Grande to celebrate the birth of Christ. In Spanish the are called farolitos, which means “little lanterns”.
Early versions of luminaries were made out of small pyramids of sticks that were about 3 ft x 3ft x 3ft. Over time, they evolved into the small paper bag lanterns you see today.
To make a luminary, you take a small paper bag, fill it with a few scoops of sand, and then place a candle on top. The sand acts as a weight to keep the bag from blowing away and a fire extinguisher if the candle gets knocked over. Most people will fold the edges down on the top of their bags to make them more aesthetically pleasing.
In some neighborhoods around Christmas time, residents will place luminaries on the streets outside their houses on a coordinated evening. Two neighborhoods that host luminaria nights near Leesville are Bartons Creek and Wood Valley.
“I love driving around the neighborhood to look at them all, and I have since I was pretty little,” said Owen Deak, junior.
“I like getting free cookies on luminary night,” said Sophie Fiander, freshman.
Some neighborhoods will host small parties on their luminaria nights, and hand out cookies and hot chocolate to residents.
Luminaries are a beautiful tradition to celebrate the winter holidays. Check out Wood Valley’s luminaria night on December 14 and Barton’s Creek’s on December 15.
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