There it was shining on the porch on a moonless night. The lamp illuminated the distance with its flickering light, allowing a glimpse of the breeze that carried floating countless winged creatures that played in the wind just as the little fish do in the waves of the sea.
A moth approaches the light without caution and circles the lamp that lies in front of the closed window.
- Hi! she risks, still blinded by the incandescent glow emanating from the lamp.
- Hi! replies back in a warm tone to the remarkable brightness.
- Sit here. says the lamp eager for a chat.
The moth hesitates.
- It must be hot! she asks in anticipation.
- It is in my nature to warm and to illuminate. And what is your nature? asks the curious lamp.
The moth circled its shiny new friend in an energetic flapping of wings as it answered without much thought.
- My nature is to court.
- Tell me more about it. Insists the interested light bulb.
- Well, as you can see, I am a moth. I am not necessarily a being whose beauty enchants. My body is robust and covered with hair, my skin is gray, my antennae are somewhat exotic, and my flight is a bit uncontrolled.
- It's a rather pessimistic image about itself. inquires the thoughtful lamp.
The moth continues, a little more excited.
- I have these big black eyes, and that somehow brings me certain advantages, because I can see, even in the dark, what other less prepared eyes cannot see.
The lamp shines in approval.
- But what they can see is me, a draft of nature, so I set out into the night. I wander through the darkness in search of the brightness that I lack. And that is what brought me to you.
Scores decisively the moth as it zigzags across the illuminated balcony.
- Hm! That's interesting," says the lamp thoughtfully. says the lamp thoughtfully.
- I have to agree with you. It does have a manifest charm in what it doesn't show, but I confess, I really prefer butterflies.
The moth is not surprised.
- Who isn't? she says jokingly.
- But you should know that butterflies only like flowers.
The lamp blinks, but soon comes back to glow with even more intensity.
- But I know how to be a flower too. says the lamp resolutely.
The moth, an old acquaintance of the night, the one who believed she had seen everything in her life, was surprised by the unexpected statement.
- And how does it do this? asks the curious moth.
- Come back in the morning and you will see. says the enraptured lamp.
The next day the moth returns to the balcony where it found the lamp lit the night before. The sunlight blurred its vision, so it had to get closer in order to contemplate the transformation of the lamp into a flower.
In a quick flight through the shadow of the roof, the moth spotted the unlit lamp in the distance. Surprised, it observed that it was in fact also a flower. There it was screwed into the center of a sconce shaped like sunflower petals.
The moth kept its distance and didn't come any closer, for, perched next to the lamp was a large and exuberant butterfly. The butterfly slowly moved its wings while rubbing its legs against the cold surface of the unlit lamp.
The moth in an awkward whirl flew back into the bush from whence it had emerged. She thought softly, "Damned lamp, you really have turned into a flower. Does it know that butterflies live only a few weeks? What does it matter? she asks herself impatiently.
The important thing is that it shines every night, so that I can be dazzled by its light from afar, and that on the dawning day, when it is already a flower, it allows butterflies to be enchanted by it, even if it has to remain unlit.
Recreio dos Bandeirantes - RJ - March 2022
Opmerkingen