This year I celebrated the arrival of spring looking out the window, one eye half open and the other watching the clock turn 7:02 the morning of March 20. While the passage of the spring equinox may have been quiet, my mind was racing in anticipation of spring adventure.

I began thinking about introducing my grandkids to some activities that were my childhood favorites. I hope we will get to try our hands at kites. I fondly remember old-fashioned paper kites that came rolled tightly around balsam wood sticks, which we used to brace the kite's structure. We didn't have the sophisticated materials and designs of today's kites, but we had plenty of traditional diamond-shaped paper and box kites. We tore old rags and tied the pieces together to fashion tails that were the rudders for our airborne fliers.

We embraced the spring winds with excitement. The more wind the day had was all the better for getting our kites high in the sky. We were competitive ― who could get his or her kite airborne first, highest, or longest? Open spaces around Butler and Broad Ripple Park were great places for kite flying. There we didn't have to worry about getting our kites caught in trees, fences, or wires.

As we go out together to fly kites this spring, I will share information that I've learned through the years about kite flying. Did you know that kites were invented by 5th-century BC Chinese philosophers? I find it interesting that kites were flown for measuring distances as well as testing winds and signaling during military operations. Surprisingly, kites have figured differently in many countries through the centuries ― sometimes used in religious ceremonies to send prayers to the gods, sometimes used as instruments for scientific research. One of my favorite pieces of kite lore involved Ben Franklin and his experiment with kite flying in a storm to prove that lightning is electricity.

My kite flying has always been for fun. I find kite design to be a fascinating art form, especially the motifs that emulate mythical beasts, birds, and insects that fly. Some of the dramatic designs with their bold colors could make kites objects of art that I would be happy having displayed in my home. What amazes me is how kites continually sport beautiful graphics, especially the more spendy ones. The modern kites with two or four lines that achieve balletic flight are enchanting.

As you may know, kite flying is popular the world over. In Asian countries it can take the form of kite fighting in which competitors, flying kites without tails, aim to snag another's kite and cut its line. This was portrayed so vividly in the recent best-seller The Kite Runner. I'm also mindful of the kite as a motif with the Peanuts character Charlie Brown whose kite getting caught in a tree was a telling metaphor for entanglement with life's adversities.

Maybe this will be the spring we get to one of the Hoosier Kitefliers Society events (www.hoosierkite.org). Being among those with a fascination for kites and knowledge to enhance the joy of flying them would definitely be a highlight of this season worth sharing. It is always a challenge to brush up on your kite flying skills each spring. Combine fun while learning and celebrate spring!