Lanterns rise, so do spirits at RiSE Festival in Nevada desert
Two girls, their hands gripping a white lantern nearly as tall as one of them, waited for the paper to fill with hot air.
Written on the outside was a message from Jade and June Laos, ages 7 and 4, for their uncle who died five years earlier in a car accident.
“I love you. I wish you could come back,” the note read, as it floated to join thousands of others that lit up the night sky Friday during the first day of the RiSE festival at the dry lake bed in Jean, 30 miles south of Las Vegas. The girls had come to the festival with their mother, Jessica Laos, from Long Beach, California.
At RiSE, which is expected to bring about 13,000 people Friday and Saturday, festivalgoers write something on their lanterns, a message to remember a loved one who died, to set aspirations or goals, let go of unnecessary burdens, or something else altogether.
And although organizers said the festival isn’t meant to be pegged to just one event or tragedy, the fifth annual event comes four days after the one-year anniversary of the massacre at the Route 91 concert on the Las Vegas Strip.
At tonight’s @risefestival #RiseFestival #TogetherWeRise in Jean, Nevada pic.twitter.com/WwdPYMy4k0
— Briana Erickson (@brianarerick) October 6, 2018
“It’s cool that RiSE has become something cathartic for the community of Las Vegas and those that were part of the tragedy that took place on Oct. 1,” festival co-founder Jeff Gehring said. “This will continue to be one of the moments of healing for Oct. 1 victims because we’re always going to fall after that every year.”
Across the desert, people filled out their lanterns with multicolored drawings, Bible verses and messages for those close to them. One Las Vegas couple, Michael Sheinin and Klara Volyn, got engaged at the event.
One woman, Camila Vicencio of Los Angeles, carefully penned “self care,” and “self love” on hers. She said her lanterns were about prayers and letting go.
“I’m getting married next year, so I’m praying for love, family, friends and health,” Vicencio, 32, said.
Next to her, friend Paola Neri wrote a prayer for her mom, who suffers from health issues.
“I’m praying just for healing,” she said. “I just want her to be happy, and she loves lights.”
Close by, 16-year-old Rohan Kalra, who came from the San Francisco Bay area with his parents and two little sisters, said he was letting go of the negativity in his life.
He also listed all his family members names with the words, “thanks for all the trips.”
“Physically doing the act of letting go, seeing it in writing, makes it more official,” he said. “Sometimes, just telling yourself to let things be might not be enough.”
Nearby, a young couple danced to the alternative music of Australian singer and songwriter Dean Lewis. On their lanterns, the Orange County residents wrote, “Love never fails.”
“It’s like hitting the refresh button,” Marc Hughes, 24, said.
His girlfriend, Rachel Zack, said the festival occurring just days after the one-year anniversary of the Oct. 1 massacre, was symbolic to letting the universe carry some of our burdens.
“It shows just how vulnerable life is,” she said. “How sometimes we don’t have control over what happens.”
Hughes added, “To see all the people here letting go of their sorrows at the same time. We’re all in this together, just as in life.”
Contact Briana Erickson at berickson@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5244. Follow @brianarerick on Twitter.
