Jar of Fireflies

The artwork within this theme carries a deeply personal significance, as it evokes cherished memories from my childhood. Growing up in a small Malaysian town called Kangar, my home was nestled beside a paddy field. An old wooden bridge spanned a narrow river nearby, where the local Malay villagers would cast their fishing lines to catch catfish for supper.

During the weekends, I joined my neighborhood friends on nocturnal firefly hunting expeditions near the river. Each of us carried a glass jar, its top covered with thin plastic sheets and secured by rubber bands. We punctured the plastic with needles to create air holes and placed a few leaves inside the jar for our luminous friends.

The magical glow of the captured fireflies never failed to captivate us, as we gazed into the jars for hours, utterly entranced by the living lanterns.