{"id":67877,"date":"2025-05-22T16:51:45","date_gmt":"2025-05-22T08:51:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/philippines\/?p=67877"},"modified":"2025-05-26T14:12:59","modified_gmt":"2025-05-26T06:12:59","slug":"life-of-a-firefly","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/philippines\/story\/67877\/life-of-a-firefly\/","title":{"rendered":"Life of a firefly"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

When was the last time you saw a field full of fireflies? In Bill Angelo Bontigao’s “Life of a Firefly,” a poem written in his native Bicol, one of Greenpeace Philippines’ youngest activists ruminates on waning innocence, gradual loss, and how our neglect threatens to dim the little lights we take for granted.<\/em><\/p>\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n

[In Bicolano]<\/p>\n\n

Buhay kan sarong Aninipot
ni: Bill Angelo Bontigao<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

Pag dulom an kalangitan,
Warang ilaw hale sa mga kaharungan,
Oras ko naman para magpahiling kan sakuyang kagayunan.
Talentong sakong ighahambog sa gabos na insektong naglalayog.<\/p>\n\n

Hale sa kahoy na Mangga minsan sa dakulang kahoy na Naga.
Kasabay kan mga Duliduli nagkakanta,
Sakong iilawan ang lubot asin masayaw na maogma,
Sarabay kami kan sakong mga amiga asin amigo liwanag samong ibabalangibog.<\/p>\n\n

Minasayaw nin pantomina, cha-cha asin minasabay sa tugtug kan gitara.
Nagsasabay sa taghoy kan paros bahala na kun saen man madara.
Pag na swetehan ko, sa kamot kan mga aki ako dadarakupon,
Ihihinghing sako ang mga tugon dangan ako papalayugon.<\/p>\n\n

Dara ko ang mga kahilingan kan mga kasaradayan,
habang pasildang na ang aldaw sakuya ining iataman,
bago ako magkaturog sako ining ipangadyi sa kaitaasan,
bako man kaya ako ang matupad kundi ang kagurangnan.<\/p>\n\n

Sa pagmuklat ko liwat kan sakong mga mata,
Dae ko na bistado ang dating lugar kun saen ako nag-oogma.
Dae ko na kayang makipagsabayan sa liwanag kan mga dalan,
Dae ko na namamati ang preskong paros na sakuyang pigduduyanan.<\/p>\n\n

Dae na ako bistado kan mga kasaradayan,
Dae na sakong nag-aabang sa mga gilid kan dalan,
Maski sa mga kanta kan gamo-gamo nata bako na makukusog,
Nata wara na akong gitarang nadadangog.<\/p>\n\n

Nata pagmati ko ako nagluluya,
Siguro oras na para ako maghale na,
Salamat sa mga oras na naging parte ako kan saimong pagdakula,
Sa saimong mga maku-apo, ako saimo na sanang iistorya,<\/p>\n\n

Kun sana ako man makakapaghagad nin tugon saindo,
kun ako mawara aram ko may mga amigo pa ako,
Sana sinda atamanon nindo,
Dae nindo pagpabayaang magpundi ang ilaw nyamo.<\/p>\n\n

\n\n

[In Tagalog]<\/p>\n\n

Buhay ng Isang Alitaptap
ni: Bill Angelo Bontigao
Isinalin ni: Karl Orit<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

Sa pagdilim ng kalangitan,
Wala nang ilaw sa mga tahanan,
Panahon ko na para ipamalas ang alindog kong tangan.
Ipinagmamalaki sa lahat ng insektong lumilipad ang aking kakayahan.<\/p>\n\n

Minsan mula sa pun\u00f2ng Mangga, minsan sa pun\u00f2ng Nara.
Kasabay ng mga umaawit na kuliglig,
Pinaiilawan ko ang aking puwit at masayang nagsasasayaw,
Kasabay ng aking mga kaibigan nangungutitap upang magpakitang-gilas.<\/p>\n\n

Sumasayaw ng pantomina, chacha, at sumasabay sa tugtog ng gitara.
Sumasabay sa pagsipol ng hangin, bahala na kung saan kami dalhin.
Kapag sinuwerte, sa kamay ng mga bata ako kukupkupin,
Makikiusap para sa kanilang pinapangarap bago ako pakawalan muli.<\/p>\n\n

Bitbit ko ang kanilang mga hiling at ligayang lihim
Na lubos kong iingatan, hanggang ang araw ay sumilip.
Bago ako humimbing, magsusumamo ako sa langit,
Bahala na ang Diyos sa mga katuparang di ko na aabutan.<\/p>\n\n

Sa aking muling pagdilat,
Hindi ko na makikilala ang lugar na lunan ng aking say\u00e1.
Hindi ko na kak\u00e1yahing sumabay sa mga nagniningning sa daan,
Hindi ko na madarama ang maginhawang simoy sa aking pinapasyalan.<\/p>\n\n

Kahit ang kabataan, hindi na ako kilala,
Wala nang naghihintay sa akin sa gilid ng lansangan.
Kahit ang awit ng mga kuliglig ay nawalan na ng sigla,
Wala na ring naririnig na tugtog ng gitara.<\/p>\n\n

Nanghihina na yata ako,
Marahil ito na ang panahon upang mamaalam.
Salamat sa mga sandaling naging bahagi ako ng iyong paglaki,
Ikuwento mo sana ako sa iyong magiging mga anak at ap\u00f3ng mumunti.<\/p>\n\n

At kung maaari, mag-iwan ako ng huling pakiusap sa inyo,
Kapag wala na ako, alam kong may mga kaibigan pa ako.
Alagaan din ninyo sana sila
At huwag ninyo hayaang ang liwanag namin ay tuluyang mapundi.<\/p>\n\n

\n\n

[In English]<\/p>\n\n

The Life of a Firefly
by: Bill Angelo Bontigao
Translated by: Pocholo Goitia<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

When the sky turns dark,
And no light shines from nearby houses,
It is my time to show my beauty.
Flaunt it to all the other insects soaring through the night.<\/p>\n\n

Sometimes I\u2019m a glimmer from the Mango tree,
sometimes from the towering Narra.
Alongside the cicadas singing their gentle song,
I light up my tail and dance happily,
Together with my friends, we shine and show each other\u2019s prowess.<\/p>\n\n

We sway to pantomina, to cha-cha, to the strum of the guitar,
We follow the whistle of the wind\u2014wherever it takes us.
If I’m lucky, a child’s hand might catch me and cradle,
Whisper to me their wishes before setting me free.<\/p>\n\n

I carry their desires and secret joys,
I handle these with care until the slip of first light.
Before I sleep, I make my own pleas to heaven,
Not by my light, but by God\u2019s grace, may they be granted.<\/p>\n\n

When I open my eyes again,
I will no longer recognize the districts of my happiness.
I won\u2019t be able to keep up with the city\u2019s shining streets,
I won\u2019t feel the cool breezes of my old gentle haunts.<\/p>\n\n

The children don\u2019t know who I am,
No one waits for me by the roadsides.
Even the cicada songs have lost vigor,
The sound of strumming guitars, gone.<\/p>\n\n

I feel myself growing weak,
Perhaps it is time for me to leave.
Thank you for the moments when I was part of your growth,
Please tell your children and their children my story.<\/p>\n\n

If I could make one final request:
I know friends who will remain, even after I go.
I hope you look after them, as you’ve looked after me,
Don\u2019t let our light extinguish completely.<\/p>\n\n

If we continue to allow habitat loss to climate change and pollution, fireflies and other species will fade to memory. By taking action, we can help stem the decline and ensure they remain a part of our world.<\/em><\/p>\n\n

\n\n

You might want to check out Greenpeace Philippines\u2019 petition called Courage for Climate, a drive in support of real policy and legal solutions in the pursuit of climate justice.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n \t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\tCourage for Climate\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

The climate crisis may seem hopeless, but now is the time for courage, not despair. Join Filipino communities taking bold action for our planet.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t \n Make an Act of Courage Today!\n <\/a>\n \t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/section>\n\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When was the last time you saw a field full of fireflies? In Bill Angelo Bontigao’s “Life of a Firefly,” a poem written in his native Bicol, he ruminates on waning innocence, gradual loss, and how our neglect threatens to dim the little lights we take for granted.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":26,"featured_media":67879,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ep_exclude_from_search":false,"p4_og_title":"","p4_og_description":"","p4_og_image":"","p4_og_image_id":"","p4_seo_canonical_url":"","p4_campaign_name":"","p4_local_project":"","p4_basket_name":"","p4_department":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[6,17,13],"p4-page-type":[16],"class_list":["post-67877","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sustainability","tag-climate","tag-pollution","tag-aboutus","p4-page-type-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/philippines\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67877","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/philippines\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/philippines\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/philippines\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/26"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/philippines\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=67877"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/philippines\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67877\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":67892,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/philippines\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67877\/revisions\/67892"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/philippines\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/67879"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/philippines\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=67877"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/philippines\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=67877"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/philippines\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=67877"},{"taxonomy":"p4-page-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/philippines\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/p4-page-type?post=67877"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}