A Labyrinth Garden

A Labyrinth Garden 

"Labyrinth is a children's playground ... grownups' battleground. " avr

Dr Abe V Rotor

A child's concept of a Labyrinthian Garden, painted in acrylic by Mackie 6, author's grand daughter.  Realism and fantasy converge into a romantic scene - eerie, mysterious and beautiful. 

A view from above akin to that on Mt Olympus, 
a little girl saw, what we grownups had missed,
a composite landscape real and imaginary;
poor in sight we are, forgetful, remiss.

Was Paradise a creation of childhood lost in time 
across a thin line that grows into a wall?
Across that Paradise is an imperfect  world,     
we sought for its perfection our goal. 

Labyrinth is a children's playground of hide-and-seek,
merry-go-round, discovering, learning;
to us grownups, battlefield, trial, tragedy;
where true happiness is always wanting. ~

A Field Trip to a Nature's Mural:

"Art is the greatest human expression of beauty, thoughts, feelings and spirituality that connect man and his Creator." avr

Wall Murals by Dr Abe V Rotor 

Living with Nature Center

San Vicente, Ilocos Sur

Off from their bikes near a mural of nature,
they sought in its shadow  rest and relief, 
in make-believe comfort from adventure,

in imagery though passing and brief.

Faithful to the sense of vision and imagination,

these murals are alive with happy children;

Wonder how long they last as the kids grow up,

as colors and memories fade 'til they're gone.

and the lesson lost with the sinking sun.

"One for all, and all for one*, " cried the musketeers 

in Alexandre Dumas' classic novel;

who's the enemy today, who are the brave knights? 

if ever the cry's still heard clear as a bell. 

The bell that tolls for the dead in the battlefield,

 victims of calamities and injustice; 

now a chime in the once beautiful landscape.

dirge for a natural world we will all miss.  

A natural world reminiscent in murals 

on the wall asking how long they shall last;

like a puzzle of the mirror on the wall,

and the bell for whom it tolls for none but us.** 

The rays of building archives cast over us, 
the aftermath of the arts
as it has always been in the past; 
yet this is not the rational of the arts, 
but the highest human expression
of beauty, thoughts and feelings
and spirituality
that connect man and his Creator. ~

*(Un pour tous, tous pour un; also inverted to All for one, and one for all) is a motto traditionally associated with the titular heroes of the novel The Three Musketeers written by Alexandre Dumas père, first published in 1844. An expression from a sermon by John Donne. Donne says that because we are all part of mankind, any person's death is a loss to all of us: “Any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind; and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.” A novel (1940) by Ernest Hemingway.**

Beat Summer with Calamba Water

 Water remains cool in earthen pot (calamba or caramba) even in hot weather.
Dr Abe V Rotor
Living with Nature School on Blog

Centerpiece of Calamba, Laguna, the birthplace of Dr Jose Rizal. The town is named after the traditional calamba (caramba Ilk) or claypot for storing drinking water. Lower photo, original calamba still being used in rural areas. Claypots are universal, They are among the first inventions of man.  They have many domestic uses from cooking, to storing grains and other goods.  Claypots are indispensable in primitive and traditional rituals and ceremonies.  

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.

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Keep your savings from bottled mineral water and refrigeration in a safebox.  It's a fortune at the end of every month. And most important, you and your family are healthier.
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Why don't you keep a calamba of cool water at home? It will entice you to drink plenty of water everyday which is good to health. One thing good with calamba water is that it's just cool enough to be refreshing, unlike refrigerated water. Sometimes the water is too cool, its bad to teeth and stomach.

Notice too, calamba water has a tinge of sweetness. It is because green algae grow on the perspiring pores. Even under indirect sunlight, algae photosynthesize and deposit simple sugar on the pot which then leaks slowly into the water. This is something old folk enjoy - cool and sweet drinking water. Compare it with plastic flavored mineral water. Or chlorinated "Nawasa juice," as some people jokingly call water from the faucet.

Note the double function of the claypot placed on this window tunnel: ventilation helps cool the water in the claypot, while the claypot cools air that passes through (air-conditioning principle)
.

There's one reminder though. Scrub off the algae - in and out - now and then to renew their growth and to keep the pores of the pot open. Don't allow crust to form. And if the calamba has long been in use, it's time to replace it with a new one. You may use the old one in the garden.

Enjoy calamba water. There is no brand in the market you can compare its unique quality. Move over mineral water. ~

Acknowledgement: Photos from Internet

Pomegranate - Old Folks' Panacea

Pomegranate - Old Folks' Panacea 
Pomegranate (Punica granatum) is a rich source of vitamin C, antioxidants, and anti-inflammatory properties. More than these, eating the fruit or drinking its juice helps protect children and adults against diseases, which include cancer and Alzheimer's disease (memory loss).

Dr Abe V Rotor

           Dehiscent* fruit of Punica granatum family Lythraceae, locally known as granada

Pomegranate or granada in local parlance mainly for its shape resembling the deadly fragmentation war tool, is a cure-all medicinal plant.  Old folks, including my dad, claim it so, citing a list of illnesses and infirmities it can cure. 

That's why we had pomegranate growing around our old house, its fruiting branches climbing on the upper part of the house.  We kids in our time would pick the ripe fruits right through the window.  Truly ripe fruits crack open exposing the bright pink or red fleshy seeds called arils. 

Today we seldom find pomegranate growing on backyards anymore as if the younger generations have set aside the old folks' claim in favor of modern medicine and other  fruits having similar benefits. 

While this may be the reason, pomegranate has distinct properties which are the subject of researches in cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer's, high blood pressure and the like. And who would prefer eating a cumbersome fruit in lieu of many popular fruits and their products which are readily available in the market? 

But with the increasing medical cases doctors are looking back into alternative remedies. For example, the fruit contains punicalagins and punicic acid, from which its genus Punica is derived, are responsible for most of the fruit’s health benefits other fruits may not have.  Punicalagins in the pomegranate juice have been found to reduce inflammation, and is effective against cancer and diabetes. 

Lately I found a fruiting pomegranate clinging on a wrought iron fence.  It reminded me of my dad who treasured this plant throughout his life.  It is not only a reminiscence; it is revival.  The owner Mr Simo Ragasa welcomed me to take pictures of the shrub-tree and gave me a seedling of it.  

 

The pomegranate (Punica granatum) is a fruit-bearing deciduous shrub in the family Lythraceae that grows between 5 and 10 m tall. Photos by the author in San Vicente, Ilocos Sur 2019 (Courtesy of My Simo Ragasa and family)

These are health benefits of pomegranate fruit taken fresh or as juice (home made or commercial)   

• The pomegranate fruit contains sugar and hundreds of edible seeds called arils which are rich in fiber, vitamins, minerals and bio active compounds.
• Pomegranate juice is effective against breast and other forms of cancer.
• When taken regularly pomegranate juice lowers blood pressure and maintains it at a favorable level.
• It is effective in controlling arthritis, against heart disease; it stabilizes cholesterol level.
• For men it is effective against prostate cancer and erectile dysfunction.
• It has antibacterial and antiviral properties which may be useful against common gum diseases and yeast infections.
• It Improves memory in older adults and post-surgery.
• It protects against Alzheimer's disease.
• It improves exercise performance by increasing blood flow.


 

Mr Simo Ragasa (left) welcomed me to take pictures of his pomegranate and gave me a seedling of it. I planted it in the very spot where dad's pomegranate once grew when I was a child. 

* Dehiscent - fruit automatically breaks open to disseminate its seeds, a natural adaptation of many plant species like legumes. 

Reference: 12 Health Benefits of Pomegranate
Written by Joe Leech, MS on August 15, 2018
Healthline Newsletter

Garden Creatures in Verses (Patch of Eden Series)

Garden Creatures in Verses 

If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need. - Marcus Tullius Cicero

Dr Abe V Rotor

Squash beetle (Epilachna), Order Coleoptera  

If I make you into a ring,

Necklace or earring,

I rob the garden of beauty

and myself of digtnity.

Plant lice (Psylla) Order Homoptera, 

scourge of ipil-ipil (Leucaena glauca)

Psylla, Psylla everywhere

on buds and twigs and all;

lice to eggs and eggs to lice,

in cycle bidding for time,

'til your inevitable fall

and your last host dies.

 

Sulfur butterfly (Terrias hecabe) Order Lepidoptera

Sulfur - that you got your name -

Amorphous.  Beautiful.

Fancy. Bane.

Web spider (Class Arachnida) waits for prey

Arachne was jealous of your art, 

strung with pearls at sunrise

that snare the unwary of any size,

kin or foe, and nothing apart.

Brooding spider with egg mass. Class Arachnida

She protects her brood before the tempest,   

shepherds her tiny ones from the nest; 

ask Charles Darwin the explanation, 

and Robert Bruce a living lesson,

Colored tilapia (Tilapia sp)

Perhaps nothing is sweeter

than putting off for some time

the cares and troubles of the world,

for sweet nothings today - 

and only for today.

Juvenile toad (Bufo) camouflaged with cottony mass

A young toad on a drifting leaf

down the river of no return,

reaches some bank somewhere,

and that's its journey's end.

Annual cicada (Tibicen).  The male makes a shrilling 
call, attracting a would-be mate. Female cicadas 
of all species are dumb.     

The shrill of a Romeo, a love call since,

reverberates through trees, across the fields

until a maiden comes, obligingly yields; 

the singing stops, a new season begins.~

Self-Healing Power of Trees

And if it fails...
a woodpecker chisels the dead heart,
an abode for her young's need;
home of the owl, roost to a passing lark,
sweet is benevolence indeed.

Dr Abe V Rotor

    Black-rumped Flameback Dinopium benghalense in Kolkata, West Bengal, India.
JM Gang, Internet

  
New shoots emerge to eventually replace the lost crown 
of a mahogany tree (Swietenia macrophylla). A lone shoot 
rises from a cut branch of a fire tree (Delonix regia), UST
Manila

Rot starts at the center on an old cut, while
healing takes place peripherally in a camphor
tree. Annual rings show that the branch was
five years old when it was cut.

Normal healing process showing actively dividing cambium
layer which will completely cover the wound. Note numerous
dots on the newly formed layer. These are breathing pores
called lenticles, counterpart of stomata on the leaves.

   

Completely healed wound. Scars of vandalism. Law prohibits 

posting of advertisements on trees, so with other destructive means

Delayed healing exposes the wood to rot and
eventually form a hollow - the result of a
typhoon which ripped off a major branch
from the trunk.

EcoSanctuary - Laboratory of Nature

EcoSanctuary - Laboratory of Nature  

It is a replica of the natural world unspoiled by man, a patch of the lost Eden. 

Dr Abe V Rotor

Bird of Paradise (Heliconia latipatha Benth) Family Heliconiaceae

They say you are a True Bird of Paradise

left after the Fall,

by one sweep of the mighty sword

that smite the sinful;
 truly you bear the color of that sword

as golden as your soul.

Camia (Hedichium coronarium) Family Liliaceae

Wings, wings - they are not all that fly; 

they fly in the mind, fragrance

riding in purest colors, as dewdrops

become nectar, and nectar to dewdrops

greeting the morning sun, 

shrinking, sinking and gone.

Lotus [Nelumbium nelumbo (Linn) Druce] Family Nymphaeaceae

If white is pure,

then what is color?

Mayana (Coleus blumei) Family Labiatae

Dress up quickly and beam with valor; 

youth is fleeting for the frail and bold;

play with the sun in kaleidoscope color,

after the equinox the wind grows cold. 

Red (Anthurium sp) Family Araceae

Mimicry is the name of the game,

all in survival's name -

defense and offense,

conceit and deceit - 

cloaked in beauty or nonsense.

A wild orchid

 In the wild beauty is simple and true.

Wild Bromeliad, Family Bromeliaceae

The forest would be dull without you, 

you hang on limbs, blossom on tree;

in your crown some little ponds lie,

oasis to fish, frog and dragonfly.

Wild is your character like your domain,

save the pineapple, your only kind,

released from your ancient gene pool,

tamed and loved by mankind.

 

 Gumamela, Centennial series (Hibiscus rosa-sinensis Linn) Family Malvaceae

Like a giant bell spliced,

once adored for its sound,

a call for a nation's stand,

and pride of a crown.

 

 Gumamela, Centennial series (Hibiscus rosa-sinensis Linn) Family Malvaceae

If only blood can wipe out blood,

and only tear can heal;

where is joy in reverence, its glory,

and a heart set free?

 Gumamela, Centennial series (Hibiscus rosa-sinensis Linn) Family Malvaceae

Frolic while it's May,

before the sun's last ray;

blessed is the blossomed hour,

for this ephemeral flower

Mulberry (Morus alba) Family Malvaceae

In perfect mimicry

of friends and foes, 

winged and hoofed - 

they pair your genes;

they spread them

over the land

in pure chance -

and biology.   

 

 Screw pine (Pandanus sp) Family Pandanaceae

Go forth and multiply, 

as your body dies bit by bit,

your genes are passed on

to your offspring, 

before the tomb is sealed. ~

A Critique on the Lost Eden

A Critique on the Lost Eden
Dr Abe V Rotor
Living with Nature School on Blog

Light in the Woods, acrylic, AVR 1994

Forest Fire, Acrylic, AVR 1995

A long list of vanished and vanishing species - even those that have not been discovered and named – haunts the human species, Homo sapiens, the most intelligent of all creatures. If this is not an evidence of the original sin which he continues to commit since his early ancestors were driven from Paradise, then we are merely being led to believe in something bound by deep faith, and in something supernatural.

Every time we destroy a forest, a coral reef, or grassland, we are repeating the fault of our ancestors. The biblical story is fiction if we fail to grasp its essence. True, exile comes in many ways. But definitely, if an ecosystem is destroyed, if it loses its capacity to provide the basic needs of its inhabitants, starvation, death, and other forms of deprivation follow. Does this not trigger exile – or exodus, which is the ultimate recourse for survival?

Here is a poem I wrote upon reaching Tagum in Davao. It is about the destruction of a forest I related in an earlier article.

The Lost Forest

Staccato of chirping meets the breeze and sunrise,
Waking the butterflies, unveiled by the rising mist;
Rush the stream where fish play with the sunbeam
And the rainforest opens, a stage no one could miss,
With every creature in a role to play without cease.

John Milton wrote his masterpiece of Paradise,
While Beethoven composed sonata with ecstasy,
Jean Fabre and Edwin Teale with lens in hand
Discovered a world Jules Verne didn’t see,
But found Aldo Leopold’s ecosystem unity.

For how long to satiate man’s greed can nature sustain?
It was not long time ago since progress became a game,
Taking the streets, marching uphill to the mountain,
Where giant machines roar, ugly men at the helm -
Folly, ignorance and greed are one and same.

AVR, 2001

In 1960 Philippine Dipterocarp Forests occupied almost 14 million hectares. What is left today is only three and one-half million hectares. The average rate of decline is over 2 percent annually. What is more alarming is the decline in the volume of trees in the forest which around 6 percent in the last 30 years. All over the world, annual deforestation represents an area as large as Luxemburg. This means every tick of the clock is a hectare of rainforest permanently erased from the globe.~

The Highwayman Robot

Don't be a victim of a highwayman robot.
Dr Abe V Rotor 

Robot at the intersection of Edsa and Quezon Blvd carrying a collection box, Photo taken January 14, 2018, around 2 pm, 

Traffic aide, alien, fashion model on the highway;

        movies come alive in our time;

Return of the Jedi on the loose that audience love 

       yet fear outside its confine.    

Fantasy gone too far, robot becoming highwayman,

       robbery or mendicancy,

Ducking the law. belittling dignity in technology, 

       force or deceit for easy money.   

Next it could be anyone, mimicking Harry Potter,

       the religious and the sages; 

Highwaymen, in camouflage becoming a plague

       today like in the Dark Ages. ~  

Author's Note: Article inspired by The Highwayman a narrative poem written by Alfred Noyes, first published in the August 1906 issue of Blackwood's Magazine, based in Edinburgh, Scotland. The Highwayman is included in English and American literature taught for almost two generations in Philippine secondary and tertiary schools.