My nanay loves to play with fire

From layoutsparks.com

And so does her fellow widow and friend Ka Lina, and their friend and fellow grandmother Ka Ese.

Ohh, these girls!

As I was pulling out of the driveway the other day, I thought I was in some kind of Hollywood set where cloud-like smoke billowed from everywhere, creating an ethereal scene where a hero -- me, probably -- was about to do something epic for the day (not really, I was only scheduled to set up a new zipline at a resort somewhere in Lipa).

I haven't driven far when smoke continued wafting through the road, this time emanating from Ka Ese's and Ka Lina's respective frontyards.

I was beginning to be convinced that I was destined to create a truly memorable day, one that would be remembered for generations and inspire countless poems and songs, that the only thing missing from the movie-like scene was a dramatic soundtrack to pump me up some more.  So I turned on the radio and out from the speakers blared the annoying voices of pseudo-DJs of Magik 88.7, carrying half-witted conversations that appeal to who knows whom.

That sent me crashing to earth and I called the smoke for what it is -- grass burning.

Ohh, these girls!

There is something about old girls who grew up in the far reaches of provinces and burning grass, and leaves and trash.  It's part of their training to keep their yard clean and free from these debris.  Thus, it became a habit that they've carried on with them, in 2012.  Despite the fact that it has been established that the smoke from burning all sorts of fuel and plant and any man-made material contributes largely to the destruction of the ozone layer.

But what do I do?  Lecture on my 77 year old mother that what she's doing is destroying earth?

I tried it once, and she gave me a pained, hurt look before turning the table on me, "Eh, sino naman ang maglilinis n'yan?"  She knew it's not me.

Our home sits on a sizeable yard with mahogany, madre cacao and all kinds of fruit-bearing trees -- providing ample shade to a carpet-like cover of bermuda and carabao grass that give way here and there to an assortment of flowering plants and shrubs.  So you can imagine that there would always be an accumulation of plant detritus to burn or dump in a compost pit (we actually have one).

It does not help that my kuya, a weekend warrior, often buys new plants to greenify our yard some more.

Once, when my nanay was burning grass I tried a new approach, "Nay, baka po yung usok eh pumunta sa mga laywan ko, baka mag-alisan."  She knew how I love my bees so she put out her fire and started another, a little farther away.

I'd  love to protect the earth in every manner possible.  But what can I do?  I don't have the heart to take another pained look from my mother, neither do I have the guts to tell her dear friends Ka Lina and Ka Ese the harm that they do whenever they burn grass.  I can't even bear to imagine the pained look that they will add to that of my nanay's.

Ohh, these girls!


I'd love to hear what you think of this post.  Please leave a comment or a reaction.  Thanks!