Gasoline Rainbows

Back in my early years, while waiting for the school bus to arrive, I sometimes chance upon gasoline rainbows on the side of pavement. These were the remnants of a leaky car tank a night ago, a waste that became an object of fascination to me, a puddle of black muck that when reflected by the rays of the sun, becomes a liquid prism. A simple joy it was, I started at the gasoline rainbow lingeringly, following the swirl of the colors until a bus honk drove me back to reality and to more complicated affairs.

Lately I have not seen these little vibrancies (or maybe I have not noticed), but I remembered my precocious experiences, recognizing the term from a novel I've just read. The happiness I felt that time must have been the same as those of the caveman's, who watched the sky change from the morning sun to a star-studded twilight. It was an innocent, sweet reminiscence.

Right now, a gasoline rainbow would have been a source of agitation for the car owner, increasing his vexation with the continuous rising of oil prices. Looking at gasoline rainbows for a youth of the 21st century would be dismissed as an activity for folks 'who have nothing better to do', preferring to listen to his iPod's 20,000-plus MP3s, or texting at her MMS-capable, WAP-powered, Bluetooth-activated mobile phone (with built-in camera, of course). It's not a problem, but the current observation is this: we seem to worry about the swelling cost of basic necessities, but we don't seem to mind spending on things that give us relatively temporary enjoyment. And you react: Hey, nothing is free in this world!

It is the same notion that got me thinking, where have all the 'freebies' gone? About playing games in the park, or giving joy and assistance -- be it to a loved one or a stranger, or communicating with a friend not just in real time, but in the flesh? What has become of 'life's gasoline rainbows'? They have been replaced instead by big companies offering you their products and services, subliminally telling you to blindly advocate them, while in fact it just benefits the provider and not the other way around. All you get is some body impairments (e.g. damaged ears, sore thumbs), the hole in the pocket as merely an afterthought. Nothing beats the satisfaction you get anyway.

Well, beat this. While you sit comfortably and have the fun and time of your life, have you thought of the next person? There is someone in the world that needs your help, your advice, your funny anecdote, your smile. Think of the underprivileged yet equally promising man (had he given the chance), while you spend your dough like there's no tomorrow... you might just end up like him down there in the streets. This is what's wrong with the present situation: we turn the other cheek to things that really matter, rather focusing on mundane gratification.

Take a breather. Have you been someone's 'gasoline rainbow' today? For I bet that the reward you'll get is worth more than a pot of gold.

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Note: This essay was published in Tulay Fortnightly dated April 3, 2007 (page 7).