Rediscovering Lost Culture and Art - Pride of a People and Nation

 Rediscovering Lost Culture and Art - Pride of a People and Nation
My dad taught me from my youngest childhood memories through these connections with Aboriginal and tribal people that you must always protect people's sacred status, regardless of the past. (Steve Irwin)

Dr Abe V Rotor 

 Revival of Pottery: art and livelihood, environment friendly. Sudipen, La Union

Homogenization, like a giant pool, mirrors a phenomenon which is a consequence of progress - globalization.

Globalization is irreversible. But is it really progression. If it is trend of progress where will it lead us to? To what extent, and for how long? The believers of this thesis are disciples of science and technology, and therefore are not afraid to open new horizons. They seldom look behind.

The traditionalists look at things differently. They have deeper roots in history and culture, they find time to ponder and analyze, and ask others and themselves, “Quo vadis?” But don’t get me wrong as anti progressive, anti technology.

Globalization is like a cauldron in which diversities of culture are thrown into. They dissolve in our very eyes. Either they disappear or lose their identity.

Clearly there is homogenization of races, creeds, ideologies - technology. For example there is only one kind of car in the world – they all work of the principle of Internal Combustion. Formal education has generally of one pattern worldwide, from preparatory to post graduate; so with the various courses offered.

Ethnicity encompasses many aspects of life and culture; other the humanities are the natural sciences, ethnobotany among them (the study of the relationship of people and plants in a natural setting.). 

Ethnic wooden art in the Cordillera

From here evolved the knowledge of man in pharmacology, and while such knowledge has vastly grown into a major industry dominated by multinational companies, a great deal of herbal healing still abound in rural communities.

Folk wisdom akin to traditional knowledge is carried onto the present by elder members of the community has lost much significance in general perception, but a great number of them are enshrined by our culture and writings. They are natural leaders whose words are listened to with respect. Why village elders have also the role of an herbolario, matchmakers in marriages, teachers in their own right based on rich experiences and long practice!

Confucian teachings permeate in the family. Christian values are reinforced by age-long heritage, and vice versa. So with the teachings of Buddha and Mohammad, and other great religious leaders. Mythology, too, has deep rooted influence in our lives. It lives in our superstitious belief, folklore and customs. But many of these are being threatened, if not endangered, in our march toward progress and affluence, along with the current of postmodernism which is sweeping the world today.

On the other hand, there is growing consciousness for moderation in living. More and more people are looking for alternatives of the so-called Good Life.

One alternative is the revival of tradition, a rediscovery of lost culture and art can be enshrined in our present life.

1. Revival of ethno medicinal healing has suddenly found relevance where the dangers of modern medicine are perceived. Lagundi, Oregano, Sambong are now DOH-approved How about the bulk of herbal medicine?

2. It’s the cold wind from the north that came too soon that caused poor rice harvest. Old folks would tell us. And scientists confirm that pollination-fertilization is indeed adversely affected by cold weather.

Home child delivery assisted by a village "kumadrona" .
3. Pet therapy is gaining popularity even in modern hospitals. Victims of stroke who lost coordination of their hands surprisingly recover with a pet around.

4. Honeybee sting sends arthritic people back on the road.

5. Return to cotton, ramie, abaca, flax, and other natural fibers for clothing and other wears is indicative of people's awareness on the comfort and health benefits of these natural fibers, not to mention their being environment friendly.

5. Ethnic art  is gaining popularity in galleries and studios. Native arts are found on murals and in halls. The revival of ethnic art is very visible among the aborigines of Australia, the American Indians, the Incas and Aztecs.So with other indigenous cultures.



Headgear is ethnic art and status symbol among the Igorots.

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We need to help students and parents cherish and preserve the ethnic and cultural diversity that nourishes and strengthens this community - and this nation. - Cesar Chavez
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Bouquet - Story of Life

Dr Abe V Rotor

Bouquet in acrylic by the author, circa 1998

Flowers bloom best in spring

grains in summer, leaves in fall;

and in the wintry sunset of life,

violet and roses crowd the pall. 

Monet’s water lilies at twilight,

 And Van Gogh's sunflower,

speak of the golden years of life,

faithful to the final hour.       

Fresh and lovely, humble at noon,

gleaming still in the setting sun,  

bouquet to wreath is a story -

the beautiful life of man. ~ 

"A boy's best friend is his mother."

"A boy's best friend is his mother." 

There has never been, nor will there ever be, anything quite so special as the love between the mother and a son." (Anonymous)

Dr Abe V Rotor

Markus 4, and his mom.

Mother - the sweetest sound:
mommy, mama, mom, nanay, inay;
there's mother in all languages,
her breath, whisper the same thing,
her face, smile, all her images.

Mother Earth, motherland,
universal, living and non-living,
mother's forever, in everything;
when in comfort, when lost,
there's always a mother calling.

Great men, a mother behind,
angel on earth or hereafter,
mother, first word in the cradle,
mother, last word on the dying bed,
first and last rays of the candle.

A Song for Mama, Ave Maria,
on her birthday, on Mothers' Day;
to Ceres, mother of good harvest,
with Gaia, goddess of the earth,
Rhea, mother of all goddesses.

Mother, guardian and teacher,
to her own, orphans, abandoned,
faith is but one, so with love,
old and young, any brethren
are seen as mothers Above. ~

Markus, on his 3rd birthday, with his mom. During the first 3 years of life, a child’s brain develops at an astonishing rate. By age 3, the brain has reached 80% of its adult size. Developmental experiences determine the organizational and functional status of the mature brain. It is therefore critical during this time to focus on quality care taking and building a strong and healthy attachment, particularly with the mother (or guardian who takes care of the child as a biological mother does. NOTE: Markus is now 4, He is now a kinder.


A boy's best friend is his mother.

- Joseph Stefano (Screenwriter, Black Orchid, and Hitchcock's Psycho)Sons are the anchors of a mother's life. - Sophocles (Ancient Greek writer-dramatist, 
Oedipus the King)

A man loves his sweetheart the most, his wife the best, but his mother the longest. Irish ProverbHappy is the son whose faith in his mother remains unchallenged. Louisa May Alcott (author of The Little Women)

There is an endearing tenderness in the love of a mother to a son that transcends all other affections of the heart. - Washington Irving (author, Rip Van Winkle, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow)

Mothers are inscrutable beings to their sons, always. - A.E. Coppard (author, The Collected Tales)

A good son will never allow sorrow to befall her mother...and act as if he is an only child that cares...protects when no one dares...serves with his life in return...and most of all finds a wife that will love his mother too. - Helen Rebibis Ramos (Philippine author, Bluemoon of Memories)

If a man has been his mother's undisputed darling he retains throughout life the triumphant feeling, the confidence in success, which not seldom brings actual success along with it. - Sigmund Freud (Austrian neurologist and the founder of psychoanalysis)

To a mother, a son is never a fully grown man; and a son is never a fully grown man until he understands and accepts this about his mother. Unknown ~


Famous People Whose Career Was Inspired by Mom

1. Of all the persons who had the greatest influence on Jose Rizal’s development as a person was his mother Teodora Alonso.  It was she who opened his eyes and heart to the world around him—with all its soul and poetry, as well as its bigotry and injustice.  Throughout his brief life, Rizal proved to be his mother’s son, a chip off the old block, as he constantly strove to keep faith the lessons she taught him.

2. "My mother was the most beautiful woman I ever saw. All I am I owe to my mother. I attribute all my success in life to the moral, intellectual and physical education I received from her.” – George Washington 

3. “My mother was the making of me. She was so true, so sure of me; and I felt I had something to live for, someone I must not disappoint.” – Thomas Alva Edison 

4."All that I am or ever hope to be, I owe to my angel Mother.” – Abraham Lincoln 

5. “A mother is the truest friend we have, when trials, heavy and sudden, fall upon us; when adversity takes the place of prosperity; when friends who rejoice with us in our sunshine, desert us when troubles thicken around us, still will she cling to us, and endeavor by her kind precepts and counsels to dissipate the clouds of darkness, and cause peace to return to our hearts.” – Washington Irving 

6. “My mother said to me, ‘If you become a soldier you’ll be a general; if you become a monk you’ll end up as the pope.’ Instead, I became a painter and wound up as Picasso.”—Pablo Picasso 

7. “It seems to me that my mother was the most splendid woman I ever knew… I have met a lot of people knocking around the world since, but I have never met a more thoroughly refined woman than my mother. If I have amounted to anything, it will be due to her.”—Charles Chaplin

8.  "My mother was an angel upon earth. She was a minister of blessing to all human beings within her sphere of action. Her heart was the abode of heavenly purity… She was the real personification of female virtue, of piety, of charity, of ever active and never intermitting benevolence." US President John Quincy Adams. 

9. As India’s first female Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi (1917—1984) She also entrusted a sense of duty in her two sons, Rajiv and Sanjay Gandhi, who both grew up to become politicians; Rajiv became Prime Minister of India after his mother was assassinated in 1984.

10. Hoelun, famous as the mother of Genghis Khan, she survived getting kidnapped, widowhood, and being an outcast, to becoming the mother and advisor to one of the largest empires the world has ever known (as well as being one of the few people who could yell at Genghis and get away with it)

Acknowledgement: Internet

Reviving Old Folk Technologies. Here are 10 traditional practices.

Dr Abe V Rotor

 1. To control coconut beetles broadcast ordinary sand into the leaf axils.

This insect, Oryctes rhinoceros, is a scourge of coconut, the larva and adult burrow into the bud and destroy the whole top or crown of the tree. There is scientific explanation to this practice of throwing sand into the axis of the leaves.  Sand which is silica, the raw material in making glass, penetrates into the conjunctiva - the soft skin adjoining the hard body plates, in effect injuring the insect.  As the insect moves, the silica penetrates deeper into the delicate tissues of the insect. As a result the insect dies from dehydration and infection. Thus we observe that this beetle seldom attacks coconut trees growing along the seashore. 

2. Wounding a tree induces it to fruit.

There are trees that tend to grow luxuriantly, bearing few or no fruits at all.  Imagine a disappointed a farmer reaching for his bolo, but instead of cutting down the whole tree, he inflicts wounds on its trunks and branches, resulting in multiple staggered wounds. As the wounds start to heal the tree starts to bloom.

What could be the explanation to this?  Nature has provided a coping up mechanism for organisms subjected to stress so that they can successfully pass on their genes to the next generation – reproduction. We may be surprised to see plants under dry condition profusely blooming.  Some bamboo species flower during the El Niño.  Starved caterpillar transforms into pupa, skipping one or two moultings, and soon metamorphoses into butterfly, diminutive it may become. Early sexual maturity is also observed in many animals that are under stress compared to their normal counterparts.      

To the mango tree, the effect is the same, a phenomenon that is not clearly understood. Physiologically the stored food in the wounded plant will shift to be used for reproduction, rather than continued vegetative growth, which explains sudden blooming. This is the same principle in pruning grapevines to induce fruiting. 

mango tree

3. Smudging induces flowering of fruit trees and protects fruits from pests. 

This is a common practice on many common fruit trees, especially mango. Old folks gather dried leaves, grass, rice hull, corn stalk and the like, and burn them slowly under the trees.  The smoke is directed to the branches and leaves early every morning until flowers come out, and is later resumed to protect the fruits from insects and fungi. Smudging is preferred over potassium nitrate spraying used to force mangoes to flower out of season.  Repeated chemical spraying reduces the life span of the tree, which is not the case in smudging.

4. Pruning induces growth and development of plants. 

Farmers prune the leaves of rice seedlings before they are transplanted to quicken recovery.  Cuttings such as cassava, sweet potato, sugar cane, and even ornamental like croton (San Francisco), are planted by first removing all the leaves attached to the stem.  This reduces transpiration or loss of water through the stomata (breathing organ) located on the leaves, that would otherwise lead to the drying of the planting material. For sugarcane tops, with the older leaves trimmed the bud can come out more easily and start to photosynthesize.

5. To increase corn yield “decapitate” the standing crop. (detasseling)

Detasseling or removal of the male flower of the standing corn plant reduces the chances of corn borers (Pyrausta nobilales and Heliothes armigera) infestation by almost one-half. Detasseling is done when one-half to three-fourths of the tassel has emerged.  Pulling out the tassel or cutting it at the base of the peduncle does it.  This technique has been found effective when performed to 75 percent of the plants or in three to every four corn rows.  Detasseling at this level does not significantly affect pollination and subsequent yield.

Farmers know plant physiology, a major subject in botany and agriculture.

6. “Blind” the eyes of the Cavendish banana sucker before transplanting it, otherwise it will die.

Now this is a paradox, for how can a blinded creature have a better chance to survive?  But this traditional practice is not to be taken literally.  Actually the eyes being referred to are the developing suckers on the base (corm) of the sucker to be transplanted.  The scientific explanation is that, these very young suckers compete with the transplanted sucker drawing out the nutrients it needs.  Thus “blinding” is actually aborting the small suckers, which appear like eyes on closer look. (Note: This practice is done only to Cavendish or tumok variety and not to other banana varieties.) 

7.  Pinag-aasawa ang bulaklak ng kalabasa. (Pollination)

Squash (Cucurbita maxima), being monoecious has both male and female flowers in the same plant.  Old folks believe that in order for the female flower (the one with a bulbous bottom) to develop into a fruit, it must be pollinated (lagyan ng semilya) with the male flower. It is usually in the early morning that the patient farmer pick a stamen loaded with pollen from the same or nearby plant and insert it into a receptive female flower, ceremoniously folding the petals inward after. While pollination is mainly the work of insects and wind,  man’s intervention often yields better results. 

8. It is a common practice of farmers to cover fruits with ash, sand or sawdust to delay their ripening and minimize losses.   

In the countryside where there are no modern facilities for storage farmers have devised methods of storage to increase the shelf life of fruits, and allow them to ripen properly. One method is to cover the fruits, such as tomatoes, mango and bananas with ash or sawdust.

To validate the effectiveness of this practice, scientists at UPLB tried storing tomatoes (Pope variety), for the duration of one to two weeks, in rice hull ash in two preparations – moist and dry.  Tomatoes stored in dry ash ripened faster, while tomatoes stored in moist ash ripened slower and showed a more uniform and deeper red color.  The tomatoes were also heavier and firmer than those stored in dry ash.  Tomatoes that were simply stored in pile suffered significant losses and ripening was uneven. The colors of the fruits were pale red and predominantly yellow.

It was an old practice I observed among vegetable traders who ship green Pope tomatoes grown in Claveria (Cagayan de Oro) all the way to La Trinidad Valley in Benguet by boat and truck. The tomatoes were laid open in the cool air, until they ripened into bright red color.  They were then individually wiped with waxed cloth, assorted and returned to their crates and branded Baguio tomatoes. Tomatoes that ripened on the way, which normally took about a week, turned into yellow to orange color and were priced much less than those ripened under a temperate climate in the highland.

There is now a substitute to this practice.  Tomatoes can be delayed in ripening and ripen uniformly into red color when stored in moist rice hull ash.  We can only imagine the high cost and difficulty of shipping the fruits all the way from Mindanao via Manila pier to the Benguet, then transporting the commodity back to Manila where they are sold.     

9. Apply lime or alum on the butt end of cabbage to stay fresh and longer in the shelf.

To validate this practice, an experiment was conducted at UPLB using common lime (CaO) or apug. The powder was applied on the butt end of cabbage after trimming it together with the two or three wrapper leaves. This simple practice prevented soft rot caused by the bacterium Erwina carotovora by 70 percent.  The use of alum (tawas) on the other hand reduced rotting by 53 percent. It has one disadvantage though – the aluminum salt cause black spots.  Lime-treated cabbage had better appearance after four days in storage than those treated with alum, borax or sodium hypochlorite (Ordinary household bleach) and salt (sodium chloride).     

                                              

10. Water remains cool in earthen pot (calamba or caramba) even in hot weather.

Notice that the earthen pot “perspires” because it is porous.  Like sweat it keeps the body cool. Cooling is the after effect of evaporation. Fanning increases the rate of evaporation, so with cooling. ~

Acknowledgement: Wikipedia, Internet Images

Get rid of Mosquitoes with Poeciliids

In memory of Professor Grace Cruz PhD of Bulacan State University.  Dr Cruz worked on Poecillia to control mosquitoes for her doctoral degree in biology at the UST Graduate School.  
Raising poeciliids in your backyard can help eradicate dengue- and malaria- carrying mosquitoes. And now, Zika Virus
Dr Abe V Rotor

 Kataba or bubuntis 

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The Poeciliidae are a family of freshwater fish of the order Cyprinodontiformes, the tooth-carps, and include well-known live-bearing aquarium fish, such as the guppy, molly, platy, and swordtail. The original distribution of the family was the southeastern United States to north of Rio de la Plata, Argentina. However, due to release of aquarium specimens and the widespread use of species of the genera Poecilia and Gambusia for mosquito control, poeciliids can today be found in all tropical and subtropical areas of the world. Wikipedia

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------You can build a mini-pond in your backyard. Then you can fill the mini-pond with tilapia, catfish (hito), even carp and pangasius. The fishes are good predators of mosquito wrigglers. But there is another highly recommended fish, the kataba or poeciliid, a large family of small fishes known for being predatory as well as omnivorous.

Residents along esteros can live without window and door screens and mosquito nets due to the presence of this biological friend and nemesis of the kiti-kiti or mosquito wrigglers.

The importance of insectivorous fish cannot be underestimated. In China the government mandated the raising of mosquito-eating fishes during the dengue outbreak in 1981. The Chinese raised fishes like the poeciliids , tilapia and catfish in canals, ponds, fields, and even household water containers. Indeed, the community project prospered and in no time the epidemic was contained.

Characteristics of the Kataba

This kataba fish is around three centimeters, from shout to tail tip. It is laterally compressed but stocky and fat-belied, hence its name bubuntis or kataba which means fat. Although brown or black in color, it exudes a dainty prism on its belly and sides- earning for it the name “rainbow fish”.

They are found almost everywhere as long as there is water- in fields, irrigation and drainage canals. For this reason, they are also called canal fish. If you see bubbling ripples in Manila’s esteros, you know the katabas are around - the fish can adapt to a wide range of environments, from canals to estuaries.

Imagine schools of poeciliids inhabiting the esteros, the tributaries of the Pasig River. They live around the bends, in coves, rock pools and in mudflats. When it rains, they go up stream. Poeciliids are found in Laguna Bay down Pasig River, reaching as far as the estuarine area.

Biological Control

If there is a single program that warrants full attention, it is the control of malaria and dengue, the most dreaded pandemic diseases which have killed countless people all over the world.

Deep concern has been demonstrated by governments. For example, in South Korea, a local fish Aphyocypris chinensis was found very effective in controlling mosquito vectors. Papua New Guinea and French Polynesia used Gambusia affinis and Aphanaus affinis in mosquito control. It was in Florida, Mississippi, Central America and Mexico where where Gambusia became popular, and soon this fish found its way to many countries.

But it is the poeciliids which has adapted in this country, along with other insect-eating fish species which include liwalo, spotted gourami, tilapia, mudfish (dalag) and hito.

Poeciliids are also prey to many bigger fishes. Surprisingly, because of their number and rapid rate of reproduction, poeciliids have managed to maintain stable populations even in open waters. Besides, the poeciliid prefers shallow areas and the edges of water where it is relatively safer.

Poeciliids swallow their food whole like a boa, except that their mouths are wide open. We call this luxury feeding.

Poeciliids peak during the rainy season in June, then declines in the cool months and toward summer. In January, only one out of two poeciliids are positive of insect prey, which means that they rely on plankton, like algae which are abundant in rivers and lakes at this time of the year. These facts were observed by the late Dr. Grace M. Cruz of the University of Santo Tomas in her 1998 dissertation.~

Phosphorescent caterpillars

Caterpillars eating the leaves of ilang-ilang (Cananga odorata),at home near La Mesa watershed. 

Dr Abe V Rotor

They came - an army of hungry glowing worms,
on a sunset on a tall ilang-ilang tree;
there they hang like lanterns or neon far away,
and in crepuscular light there I could see 
a familiar tree traced by its essence in the air,
and now by the phosphorescence from this tree -
Christmas ahead and beyond yet here at hand,
by the glow of these worms reminds of Thee;
through nature's ways to guard the frail and lowly
through the secret of ephemeral beauty. ~
   

The Eyes of Nature

"Many eyes are looking at me

here with Nature,

by day and night 

beneath and atop a tree." - avr

Painting and Poem by Dr Abe V Rotor

Also visit my other Blogs:

[avrotor.blogspot.com]

[Living with Nature School on Blog]

 Eyes in the Forest, acrylic painting on canvas (60" x 44"), by AVR, May 2012

Details: Young adventurers in full gear prepare to penetrate the forest; emergent tree rises to a hundred feet surpassing the canopy layer. A nest is perched on the top, with a mother hawk attending to her young.

A pair of deer, a coiled boa, and many more hidden and camouflaged. Trees are real giants of the living world. This Dipterocarp is tallest tree in the Tropical Rain Forest. 

The Eyes of Nature

Many eyes are looking at me here with Nature;

By day and night, beneath and atop a tree.

They're scary, they're mean, they're sleepy, 

And how do I look to them seeing me?

Wink and they wink, close and they do, too.

Quick the flashlight, and they disappear;

Can eyes exist alone, like stars in the sky?

I wonder if these eyes are like stars to cheer.  

Yes, the fireflies have lamps that flicker,

The moth and butterfly have wing spots

Like monstrous eyes to stave off predator,

And cave dwellers glow in rows and knots. 

The fish in the stream is silver in the moonlight,

As bubbles rise to the surface and sparkle,

The owl rarely blinks, no creature dare around,

Its infrared vision indeed a marvel.

Raindrops falling make a thousand eyes
Life they bring to the rainbow, borrowing
its colors glow, and sparkle as they drop,
reborn with the light of the river flowing. 

Mushrooms are phosphorescent, they glow,

while others absorb light for future use; 

Ah, boast the snake, I can freeze you to fall,

An eagle swoops, there's no excuse.

Petals attract a pollinator in the night

Crickets shine when won by a song,

Seeds pop out to meet the rising sun,

And the sun shines happily all along. 

Eyes, eyes, eyes, - for us to see the world, 

And all eyes the world is bound;

In our sleep, in the deep forest and ocean,

Eyes make the world go round. ~

Ode to Six Lowly Creatures

Spider, Diatom, Hermit Crab, Red Alga, Sargassum, Tussock Caterpillar

Dr Abe V Rotor

Haring gagamba (king spider), Amadeo, Cavite

Spider

Your home is the space

where your embroidery sways

and glitters with the rainbow

giving life to shadow.

Redeem your mother Arachne

vanished for her art by Athene;

put the morning star to rest,

and the sun to its crest.

Diatom



Fortune on the De Beers' wasteland -
diamonds embedded in the rocks,
the greatest wealth of any man,
vast and immeasurable in bucks.

To anyone of us a fortune awaits,
whose skill can too, blaze a trail
on land and sea where man satiates
his craving for the holy grail.

Here's wealth to the researcher;
in Sesame's magic the lens opens
to a world of diatoms everywhere,
a greater wealth that never ends.

                    

Hermit crab (Pagarus sp)

Hermit Crab

A rare pet you are -
you never had a home,
now you have two:
you borrowed the one
on your back; the other,
above your head -
that you earned it from
the humility of a pet.

 Actinotrichia fragilis, red Marine alga

Red Alga

You are mistaken

to be aloof and mean;

of all seaweeds

you are the least seen,

for you live in the depth,

in the dimmed coral reef,

clothed in violet or red

which is your greatest gift

to catch the fading light,

to escape the grazers

and to be out of sight.

Sargassum

You make a forest on the sea floor

where the fish hide from the storm;

what puzzles those who explore

is your massive yet simple form.

                             Above: Sargassum; snorkeling on coral reef, Bacnotan, La Union

                                 

Hairy caterpillar (higad)

You are Medusa in the garden,

a serpent in garb all golden,

sowing destruction on your way

until Perseus put you away.

Sketch your way to relaxation. Self-administered relaxation through drawing++

Dr Abe V Rotor

Here is a simple way to free you from the clutches of stress and tension. Recharge with this simple method, instead of taking medicine or using paraphernalia for relaxation.

1. Get a piece of bond paper and a pen, preferably with a felt tip.

2. Find a comfortable place with chair and table.

3. Avoid disturbance, prefer to be alone.

4. Start with the model you think it's easier to do.

5. In either model, start at the center and proceed outward.

6. Do not copy, these are just patterns.

7. Draw spontaneously at your own normal pace.

8. Detach your thoughts from anything. You are in the clouds, so to speak.

9. As you relax, your drawing may go off course. That's good.

10. You don't have to complete your drawing. Give way to relaxation - and to sleep.

Model A - Flow, let it flow

Model C - Build a labyrinth  

This exercise will help you fight boredom. The ultimate proof that it is effective is that, it induces you to sleep and attain good rest. Why, you can compile your drawings into a workbook and share it to others!

Mount Makiling Botanical Garden: Perfect Site for Nature Study

Dr Abe V Rotor

Students from Metro Manila visit the Mt Makiling Botanical Garden at UPLB Laguna, some 70 km away.  

Ode to Mount Makiling

Sleep, sleep deep and well,

just snore gently through your fumarole,

bubbling the warmth of the earth, 

and play a friendly role:

Creatures all you carry on your back and top,

birds too tired on their route come to a stop;

a sanctuary to them, and others in transience,

bringing them together in seasonal conference;

up north they return when their winter is over,

and down south others go for their summer;

Many tenants you care by your rules and game;

in Nature, each has a role whether wild or  tame.

your trees catch the clouds coming drifting low, 

and humble the wind to come in gentle blow.

sunrise comes in golden spears among the trees

that unveil the mist and dance with the breeze.

sunset comes early in the trees, it settles quick;  

except for the many eyes, night is dark as ink.

night sounds are eerie -  the language in the wild;

keeping campers stay awake and wide eyed. 

at daybreak comes the roll call, each creature to its chore,

and the forest is alive once more.    

cathedral of trees dwarfed only by the sky and sight

in ever increasing span of height and might.  

in storeys and boundaries, each a niche, a territory,

where each kind live in family and harmony. 

Don't wake up to soon, be that gentle mountain as long

as the children have not grown, and the grownups

coming along to catch the lost years to know you more,

away from the city, from malls and coffee shops.~

 

UPLB instructors conduct field lecture to their daily guests. 

 
Author poses with officers and members of a local Rotary Club sponsoring field trips to the Garden. 
Among them is Ms Citadel Panganiban, graduate student at the University of Santo Tomas.