Seven, six, five, four, three, two, one. And so the opening ceremony to Canada's first Paralympic Games began.

BC Place Stadium was transformed into a sea of flashing orange lights.

Then a lone trumpeter.

From there, the scene exploded. Living up to its surreal theme of "one inspires many," the ceremony inspired many.

Many left teary-eyed and offering rave reviews. The superlatives tumbled out.

Spectator Michael Small thought this opening ceremony was better than the one for the 2010 Olympic Games.

Many searched for words to describe what was the highlight, with most settling on a moving tribute to the late Terry Fox and the way the cauldron was lit by Zach Beaumont, a bright-eyed 15-year-old athlete from Delta, a young guy who few know, but who represents hope for the future.

So what was it that had the crowd so wowed?

From the moment the ceremony started at 6 p.m., it had a human, warm touch. It was alternately frenzied, quirky, playful and deeply moving.

Gov.-Gen. Michaelle Jean set the tone as she walked on stage holding hands with two children on either side. Then the stage became a sea of dancing children in the form of a maple leaf.

While everyone shouted "one mind, body, spirit," the parade of athletes began with the country of Andorra. One country after another followed.

Athletes tugged on heart strings as they rolled in on wheelchairs, tugging on wheels up a fairly steep ramp. Many have had much higher and steeper hills to climb.

As they came in some limped, others bore crutches. Some waved just one arm; others with visual impairments were led in by guides. Everyone smiled.

"It was beautiful. I loved it," said Sarah Bondo, who exited in a wheelchair pushed by Diana Nielsen. Nielsen used some of the same superlatives to describe the ceremony. She loved the energy. She also praised the staff for helping Bondo to get into the stadium.

You had to love the teams from Britain and Switzerland, whose wheelchair wheels bore the insignia of the flags. And the teams seemed to come from everywhere, from Iceland to Bosnia.

There were tiny contingents, like the ones from the 'S' countries -- Serbia, Slovenia and South Africa -- and large ones from Italy and Japan. The crowd went wild for the U.S. and even wilder for Canada.

As the audience chanted the mantra "om," a performer called Luca (Lazylegz) Patuelli, who struggled in on two poles, suddenly lit up the stage with a hip-hop dance, swinging himself around on the ground and flipping in the air. At one point, he defiantly swung one of his poles in the air. Take that. He was not going to be limited by his difficulty walking. He could dance, couldn't he?

"It was really good," said wide-eyed Sacha Shaw, who is eight years old. His mother Karen agreed. "We are lucky to have such inspiring athletes."

There were solemn and some awkward moments, too.

The chief executive officer of the 2010 Games, John Furlong, seemed to get large cheers despite speaking in painful French.

However, his message resonated. "Nous sommes les manteaux bleus," he proclaimed, paying tribute the blue-jacketed volunteers who have been such a part of these Games.

His English words were far better. Praising the athletes, he said, "To you, impossible is just a word, a distraction."

yzacharias@vancouversun.com