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A Garden Full of Flags: What I Found at the Luxembourg National Day Rehearsals

I went to the park for air and movement, as usual, but found rows of metal barricades and technicians adjusting microphones under small tents. It was the day before National Day, and something official was clearly in rehearsal mode.

Near the central monument, a military band was warming up — trumpets testing scales, a bass drum sounding like distant construction. No speeches, just tuning. I stood beneath a linden tree, unnoticed, perfectly placed to watch them figure out the rhythm of tomorrow.

Further down the path, municipal workers were tying red-white-blue ribbons onto lampposts. One ladder leaned against a statue. Everything had a quiet urgency — not showy yet, just the bones of celebration being stitched together.

A girl on a scooter stopped beside me and asked what was happening. I told her what little I knew — that tomorrow is Luxembourg’s National Day, that there will be parades and fireworks. She nodded like she’d heard it all before, then zoomed off.

By noon, the rehearsal had wrapped. The trumpet players folded their stands and walked away in pairs, some still chatting. I didn’t expect a civic rehearsal to be so peaceful. It felt less like performance and more like preparation for a shared breath.

I walked home the long way, passing flags hung from balconies and shops. Everything seemed ready, even if no one was watching yet. The celebration starts tomorrow, but the work — and the music — starts before that.

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