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Opinion

Mar 31, 2020

Hope blooms

March brings about a certain joy for me. Summer comes and it is welcomed with a golden shower.

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Narra tree & flowers. © P.B. Pelser & J.F. Barcelona, Phytoimages.siu.edu.

March brings about a certain joy for me. Summer comes and it is welcomed with a golden shower.

Our village is lined with Narra trees (Pterocarpus indicus). They look magnificent as they stand tall and proud with their dome-shaped crown filled with golden gems.

I enjoy riding my bike around the village to witness this majestic beauty. I feel glorious when they sprinkle me with their tiny yellow flowers.

But an unexpected visitor marched in this month. Our town was placed under community quarantine after recording three cases of COVID-19, a new unknown disease causing a global pandemic.

Physical distancing was strongly encouraged and going out was prohibited except for buying food and medicine. It was at this moment that I realized how much I rely on nature for comfort, especially during this strange and challenging times.

I will soon learn that hope was not out of sight. On the second day of working from home, I looked outside my window and I couldn’t help but exclaim “Wow!” The Narra beside our house blossomed so beautifully. I’m still amazed every time I see this pretty sight. I didn’t have to go out to be with nature after all.

The flowers only last for a single day, but a new batch of buds open up after a few days. Narra’s blooming season is also short-lived – only about three to four months. After which, another phenomenon occurs: a dropping of its well-known, pod-like dry fruit which contains its seeds.  

I guess it is like hope. There are days when you can see it shining bright, then it comes out of sight, not totally leaving, but only taking its time to come out in a different form. Then it spreads its seeds and grow someplace else.

The Narra has given me a sense of hope and comfort. During this quarantine period, each one of us can be a bud of hope in our own little ways.

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You may also read more about Narra, one of our “Forest Friends” of the Philippines.

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