To Be. Or Not. Tutubi

Tutubi, tutubi
Wag ka magpahuli
Sa batang mapanghi

I saw a dragonfly in our front yard this morning. It was a red one. Or as I and my playmates used to call it when we were still young -- tutubing tanga.

You would have to have experienced catching dragonflies to know the reason behind its demeaning nickname.

Dragonfly-catching, just like other juvenile sports, requires skills and techniques which can only be improved thru practice. Yes, kids, these types of activities constituted the leisure time hobbies of kids before PS2 was invented.

And dragonfly-catching, just like the modern-day PS2 games, has different levels of difficulty. And believe it or not, it depends solely on the color of the dragonfly that you choose to catch.

The red dragonfly I just saw earlier would belong to the easy or novice level. Most of the time, the red ones are large. And maybe, their size becomes a liability for their speed factor, that they find it difficult to zoom away fast enough when they need to. It's pretty easy to catch red dragonflies.

Now, should catching the red ones bore you, move up to the next level. Try catching a green dragonfly. But this would need some more skill on your part since they are smaller and faster than the red ones. You have to be real quiet when sneaking up behind it and catching it on its tail between your thumb and your forefinger.

The last type of dragonfly is the blue one. Now, this is where boys get separated from the, um, well, slower boys. You really have to be an expert if you wish to catch a blue dragonfly. The thumb-forefinger method isn't usually effective when catching it. The blue ones are a lot faster, quicker reflexed, and generally more paranoid than the others. The slightest of movements is enough for them to sense and fly farther away from you. So the snatch technique is the best to apply in catching them. Quietly approach it from behind. And when you are already at a comfortable distance, not too close that it notices you, but close enough to be within your arm's reach, grab it. Using lightning speed, grab it, as if with a slapping motion. Quickly close your hand as soon as you feel it touch your palm. But be careful not to crush it.

I used to catch all kinds of dragonflies when I was a kid. Red, green, blue, the teeny-weeny tutubing karayom, and even the humongous tutubing kalabaw. Sometimes my friends and I did it just for the thrill of it - eventually releasing them after a while. Some kids experimented with them by tearing off their wings or tails. While some kids, already showing signs of psychotic behavior, decapitated the head of the poor creature by giving it a pitik. (Is there an English term for pitik?)

And as I told you, the dragonfly I saw earlier was a red one - the tutubing tanga. It would have been easy picking for me. But I decided not to catch it though. I guess I outgrew the childish sport. And besides, di na kasi ako pumapatol sa tanga.