Article written for and published on the Boac Mayflower Commemorative Program 2008...
written by the undersigned.
Where have all...
First of May came with the rain. Not the kind that's harsh and unrelenting like slivers of glass that come crashing in sheets but a gentle, welcome shower that refreshes. The mizzle brought back memories of childhood in its bona fide, unadulterated mode [no pun intended]… and May in Marinduque, summer vacations, flowers blooming in this merry, lusty month.It's the start of a month-long devotion to Mother Mary, Virgin of the Flowers. And childhood mornings spent on audacious yet unauthorized swims at the cool, sparkling swim holes of Boac River [you've got to find where the secret spots are] side-tripped with hunts for edible wild guavas at the kumba [fertile areas near the riverbank]. We felt like miniature, local Tarzans then, wrestling with imagined 'crocodiles' lurking at the river's deeper parts and 'living off the land' with its bounty of wild fruits.
But afternoon appointments were something else. A quick shower after lunch, a change of clothes, and on to gather bunches of flowers for the daily floral offerings to Mother Mary at the church. After endless Hail Mary's, we would line up at the nave's center aisle and walk in pairs to our Blessed Mother [didn't know that the statue was called Virgin de Las Flores; to us children She will always be Mama Mary, no matter what She wore]. And in our most formal manner, we would genuflect and as daintily as our awkward fingers would allow, stiff from playing holens [tagalized for hole-in?] or marbles the previous day, placed our fast-wilting bouquets [if it can be called a bouquet at all] at a white-linen table at her feet. Then there was another chorus con fuoco of Deus Te Salve, Maria followed by hearty Paalam Sa 'Yo, Maria [So Long, Mother Mary]. That's our cue; the sleepy [and the sleeping ones among us offerers], tired from the long morning swim and bored by the long ritual, would mysteriously jump to their feet fully awake and gaily join the line for the most eagerly-awaited prize of the afternoon.
The free candies! Sweet, yummy confectioneries that do not have to come from the meager coins in our pockets [vacation time means no regular allowance compared to your daily pocket money when classes are on]. Looking back in retrospect, I can't unequivocally say whether I came for the once-a-year chance of offering flowers to Mama Mary or for the candies [that's incentivation at its best]. I like to think I came for both; I still have self-doubts though.
On the way home from church, a good two hours were free and so neighborhood kids, mouths full of bubble gum, White Rabbit or ChocNut spontaneously organized and form teams for a friendly albeit hard-fought game of sikyo or tak-taraok.
Then home for the family oracion [evening vespers] at 6 PM barely able to respond to the lead 'The angel of the Lord declared unto Mary'; [reply] 'And She was conceived….' for my voice was hoarse from the constant shouting, helping coordinate my team to victory in the just concluded, closely fought game of street tag where we, hrmm... lost [ouch]. Joining the whole family praying the daily orasyon was prime…even crucial, duty: It meant permission from my parents and grandparents to go out of the house for an after-dinner sequel - a street game of patubig or patintero [Ah, midsummer's blessed, carefree moonlight nights]. Evening permit was good for up to 8PM, then off to bed after a compulsory quick scrub, recharging for another gloriously blithe, adventure-filled day of muggy May and the seemingly endless summer.
Soon the blue, cloudless skies - now cheerfully dotted with multihued kites wafted by a virtuous breeze that smells of earth, grass and flowers - will turn dark and gloomy with unpromising storm clouds as the rainy season comes in on its cyclic errand to replace summertime. Yet we are happy with its exquisite thoughts, the enchanting memories that May, in its full month, gifted us.
Perhaps, we find comfort in the thought that next year and in the years to come, the season of May with its mesmeric spell and chock-a-block complement of flowers and bounteous harvest; balmy melodies and sultry moonlight nights; its revered Flores de Mayo traditions, will once again come.
Or will it…. decades from now?
… The Flowers Gone
Deep in the rain forest the air was warm and humid: Its ecosystem perfect for the constant, mutual exchange between its residents of flora and fauna.
Then man from the industrial era came and forced himself upon this delicate balance, upsetting what has co-existed harmoniously for millions of years.
The forest is now gone; another kind of jungle stands in its stead: one in concrete and steel and runs entirely on fossil fuel.
Climate Change
Starting with flowers, Pete Seeger, ended his circular song with flowers seamlessly injecting war and its turmoil in between. If man does not change how he treats this planet, we may collectively end up singing 'where have all the flowers gone' from a realist's point of view, rather than poetry.
We now face a new danger, clear and real, one that will not be isolated to some distant land sparing us and our island but a real peril that threatens the only home we have – planet Earth.
Global Warming is now felt all over the world. In the country, it has manifested itself in the droughts of last year, the current food crisis, and in the island, abnormal climate shifts, off season heat waves alternating with unexpected downpours.
Greenhouse Effect
Every time we use energy from fossil fuels, indiscriminately dispose of our trash, etc, carbon dioxide is produced. It not only pollutes the air we breathe but rises to the atmosphere and coats it with impurities resulting in what scientists call exaggerated greenhouse effect.
Normally, rays from the sun strikes the earth, roughly 70% of the heat is absorbed by the earth's surface and trapped in the atmosphere. Life on the planet depends on this greenhouse effect – without it, the planet would be 330 C colder; ice will cover earth from pole to pole. Greenhouse or the atmospheric trap is provided by gases that include water vapor, carbon dioxide [CO2] and methane. However, "a growing excess of greenhouse gases in Earth's atmosphere threatens to tip the balance in the other direction—toward continual warming," warns environmental writer John Hart. Rapid population growth further upsets the equilibrium. As the numbers increase, more people produce more CO2, more forest and woodlands have to be cleared for habitation and agricultural needs.
Trees and plants, as we know, absorb carbon dioxide and change it to oxygen. With their dwindling numbers of greens, carbon dioxide we produce through the non-stop burning of fossil fuels dramatically increases resulting in more trap heat. Trees and plants, as we know, absorb carbon dioxide and change it to oxygen. With their dwindling numbers of greens, carbon dioxide we produce through the non-stop burning of fossil fuels dramatically increases resulting in more trap heat.
Global warming is a complex subject, one that would require volumes to write on. It is left to the reader to learn more about it now that an initial awareness has hopefully been created.Gloomy patch of dark gobbles the fringes of silvered ice sheet [Greenland 1992 (above left) and 2002 (above right)]. Global warming paints a similar image at the polar ice caps. Melting ice raises sea levels endangering coastal and low-lying areas. Soon gloomy will change to threatening if the trend continues.
And to those who are already versed on the issue, please do your share to generate a 'greenhouse consciousness' at home, to people we meet on the street. Just imagine on how uncomfortably hot the climate will be when your grandchild grows up [it's getting unpleasant even now, isn't it?}.
A Simple Formula for a Knotty Problem
Complex problems can, at times, be solved with simple solutions. Try this one for size, a simple mnemonic formula I have devised and used: Save/Conserve = Less Global Warming
It's basically a two birds-one stone scheme: Whenever you save [who wouldn't want to, in these times of horrifying rising prices] you also contribute to the growing worldwide movement to counter global warming. Plain and practical.
Here are some ways to lessen our CO2 footprint [and please add your own initiatives to the list}:
* When possible, walk instead of ride. Use a bike instead of a motorbike. And use a motorbike instead of your car. Carpools maximize trips and gas usage. Have a regular tune-up.
* Check your tire pressure monthly, air is free. Underflated tires not only wear out faster but consume 15% more fuel.
* When in Marinduque, turn that aircon off. The island's air is still fresh compared to the city.
* Change from incandescent bulbs to the newer energy-efficient white lights. It's brighter, last 10 times longer, and uses about a third of power.
* Take care of that dripping faucet and check for pipeline links. Shut faucet off when brushing teeth, when doing the dishes. Recycle rinse water from your washing machine. If weather permits, hang your clothes to dry instead of using that spin drier. Wash and iron clothes in bulk, not in piecemeal installments.
* Unplug your TV or DVD player after use. Unknown to the consumer leaving them on standby mode consumes power with zero efficiency.That's why they're called vampire appliances.
* Set your stove to low once the pot starts boiling. Once boiling point is reach, temperature is a steady 1000 C irrespective of whether flame is on high or low. You save on LPG and lower your CO2 emission.
* Put that empty biscuit wrapper in your pocket, not on the ground. Dispose of it on a proper trash container when you get home.
Again, the list will go on and on… It's time you add your own.
MY GREENHOUSE LIST
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[If you have more ideas, compile and share them or start a blog with your initial list.]
May as Earth Month in Marinduque
Advances in technology gave us globalization, a comprehensive term in which events in one part of the globe quickly come to have significance for people in other parts of the world. No wonder, even the greenhouse warming is now 'globalized.'
The world observed Earth Day on April 22 to call attention to the growing threats of global warming with a request for people all over the world to turn off their lights for an hour. It may have been for only an hour, for some it may have been only a few minutes but it burned in our consciousness [at least, for the fortunate ones who heard and heeded the call] that any individual can throw it his or her two cent's worth and feel significant – a part ,albeit, small of a collective whole.
It's a wonderful challenge that can be creatively institutionalized in Mayflower programs easily, now and in the coming years. It's doing our share of helping our world neutralize the threat of global warming.
We flood Her caroza with a bounty of flowers and offer them to her daily at the church. The arkos of Santa-Cruzan come festooned with delightful bouquets.
We love flowers but do we take care of the green environment they, including ourselves, need to survive?
Surely, even Mother Mary will bless us with a sweet smile if we give Her 'flowers' and Her green island some extra special care if only on the month of May.©
Photos 3 to 5, courtesy of Encarta. All other graphics by the author.
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