VISION: PARKORCHARDS, NOT WILD FORESTS
December 7, 2007, 3 a.m.
Badbad Oriental, Loon, Bohol (Philippines)
I’ve gone to many parts of our province and though only once or twice on a plane, it was enough for me to survey our land and countryside. Like many other observers, I could feel sorry for the vast of land abandoned by the race to work and live in the cities or abroad!
Seen from above, you may still feel the beauty looking down the mountains, valets, the seas. But at the same time, you cannot prevent from further feeling sorrow when you realize that the beauty you felt is only a remnant of the more perfect happiness that you could have felt had not these places become abandoned and turned into wilderness.
These vast former farms and habitations of our ancestors are now a wilderness.
This is the first part of our landscape which I would like to see some transformation.
The second part is the remaining virgin thick forest.
When I imagine the word “forest”, a few things would immediately come to mind: wild, untamable, dangerous, and gone.
Trees have very important roles in the whole natural system God has arranged before the environmentalists had had the idea about ecology. First, trees are an important partner in the making of springs and rivers. During rains, their leaves act as the hands that catch the otherwise heavy raindrops which would turn into floods carrying top soil down to the deep valleys and seas, denuding the mountains and upland of their precious top soil. These countless hands prevent that from happening. By catching the rain drops, the leaves are then able to gently place the raindrops into the ground and find the time to sip into the earth’s crust. The second role of the trees are done by their roots. The roots do not only find food for the trees, but also act as “guides” to the rainwater to reach the natural water tanks (underground aquifers) below the ground. The roots become a natural route for the water to follow. And since the roots have penetrated even the soft rocks or the porous (limestone) layer which acts as sieve or water purifier, the water could easily flow into the aquifer (natural water tank). This underground aquifer then becomes the origin of spring and river.
As you make a round trip along the coastal high way, you would be aghast to find so many big and small river beds that have already dried many years ago. The only indication left is the little bridges connecting the roads. What does this entail? This entails that many underground aquifers had dried up long ago. Why? Because there are no more rainwater that could find their way into these aquifers. Why? Because there are no more ‘hands’ to catch those rain drops from the sky and drop them gently into the ground to give them the slow time to sip into the underground aquifers. The trees with their countless hands (leaves) are no longer there. So, gone are the trees, gone are the springs and rivers as well.
In one of His latter day messages, our Creator made mention of the superior quality of spring waters compared to those which we artificially or mechanically dup up (artesian well) or suctioned. One main reason He cited is the interaction of the sunlight with the fresh water.
Today’s typical water system which uses electric pump and pipes does not allow for the fresh water to interact with the sun. We should know therefore that light is a great purifier. Muddy waters are purified by the sunlight and made into clouds or rains. You cannot make your clothes clean without drying them in the sun. Deep within us, although we no longer understand it, is the feeling that darkness is connected with dirt, poison or disease. For example: taking minerals from the dark earth’s underground and not allowing it to be purified by the sun’s light during the process called photosynthesis in the plants leaves, would not completely cleanse the mineral’s “horns” so to speak, even if these are made to go through the scientists’ (artificial) version of photosynthesis, the chemical plant. It is called chemical synthesis. It is pseudo (fake) photosynthesis. The result of chemical synthesis is: the synthesized mineral such as “iron” does not come free of its toxins or poisons compared to the photosynthesized “iron” which is perfectly good for human health.
It is therefore without hesitation to affirm a local advertisement on mineral water which says that a large percentage of our human diseases are water-borne. Although there are so many other causes, but surely “unlighted” water has contributed to many of them. The weakening of our immune system as well as the shortening of our lives is surely partly caused by the lack of clean fresh water.
If we want to regain the lost time when fresh spring waters (of course not the one artificial made by machines), we have to consider the call of our environmentalist to increase, not decrease, the forest covers. They have other very important reasons why trees or forests must be restored. As I had said awhile ago, trees or forests are an important element in the making of fresh water springs and rivers.
And we also know the importance of rivers. They serve as the natural water supply for many farms. Very fertile lands come out beside the rivers. Nile River in Africa has supported many peoples. Also the
In increasing frequency, reports have been published warning the world of the coming water crisis. This is mainly because of the disruption of the natural process of water making: if we cut the trees or destroy the forests, we also dry up the rivers and as we dry up the rivers, much of the formerly very rich farmlands become infertile because direct rainwater from the sky cannot alone do what the forests and rivers have been doing all along. Without trees, these vast valleys and plains would become damaged by heavy rains; tons of precious top soil would be carried away to deeper valleys or to the seas via the riverbeds! So, rains without the trees are harmful to our agriculture. I say: rains need the trees, and not just the trees need the rain.
The rivers too are usually a constant water supply, unlike the rain which happens only once in a while. The rivers provide the adjacent lands the time and opportunity to sip in enough water to wet the otherwise dry farms, and not wetting the surface but more importantly the underground where the roots of our vegetations and fruit trees seek their food.
So, there we are.
Now, back to the importance of trees. The second importance of trees is its role in making oxygen. It still occurs inside the leaves... during the process of photosynthesis where the sunlight is the active element.
Let us discuss some little science. During the process of photosynthesis, the leaves absorb carbon dioxide from the air. This carbon dioxide comes from the animals and man as well as from the burning of fossil fuel (e.g., gasoline, woods, coals, etc.). And this carbon dioxide contains oxygen; that’s why it is a “dioxide” meaning, “having two atoms of oxygen”. During the next phases of the photosynthesis, some of the oxygen are used to make carbohydrates (carbon + hydrogen + oxygen) – which compose the seeds or grains as well as the fruits – our food while the rest of the oxygen are given off back to the atmosphere, as air, fresh air – oxygen, the one we need for our breathing – life..
So, we need the trees and plants – particular their leaves – to make oxygen for us. Oxygen is the type of air that we need to inhale and live. Without oxygen, we will die even if we breathe in other types of air. It is this particular type of air that we need to inhale into our lungs and give life, energizes us, by accompanying the blood where the food are carried into the different parts of our body and burning these food into energy (strength). It is the oxygen that burns food into energy. So, without oxygen, we are dead. You try it by covering your nose and mouth long enough!
Now back to the leaves.
So, the leaves are not only important in cleaning the minerals from the ground and in making food which both take place during photosynthesis. Leaves and therefore trees, are very important in making natural real spring waters and rivers upon which our farms and lives depend.
I have covered many points here albeit interconnected. But my original plan was to focus on the importance of trees to our lives because of their roles in making water-river-agriculture and in making oxygen. Having said so, let me conclude that we must by all means restore the trees.
There is another huge source of oxygen – the plankton. If I remember it right, planktons are simple celled plants which mostly look like moss that float on the vast surface of our ocean. Like the trees, they make oxygen. Plankton are plants really, simple plants. They in effect complement our trees. Without them, the destruction of our forests which spans many hectares a day, would have very devastating effect to human and animal life. Thanks to these tiny plants which are far from the reach of man’s destructive hands. But it is not too far from now when they too will suffer in man’s abusive hands. We know that tons of chemicals are thrown into the oceans, as some of these chemicals such as oil, grease, etc float on the surface, they pose grave danger to our vulnerable tiny oxygen-making plants!
Do seriously consider this even if you are not one of the environmentalists. This concerns everybody, and not just them.
This somehow leads me to discuss my final point: what we can do.
Let us stop logging, by all means.
Let us then limit or best of all totally stop the manufacturing processes which give off liquid as well as gaseous excrements which pollute (poison) the air, land and seas (e.g., our oceans’ surfaces where the planktons are!). Remember: we are losing our trees or forests to unscrupulous small and big-time loggers at inevitably alarming rate a day. Now, we are left with the planktons which very existence is threatened by the factory chemicals approaching where they are!). In short, today’s manufacturing works which use and produce deadly chemical by-products must cease.
Back to the upland: Let us restore the forest.
This brings me back to where I had started when I imagine the word forest and see a few things immediately coming to mind: wild, untamable, dangerous, and gone.
Forest to our mind is wild.
Forest is untamable.
Forest is dangerous.
And because of that, we are happy that forest is gone!
Nay, it must not be gone, and it does not need to be wild, untamable and dangerous.
WE CAN MANAGE FOREST.
We can make forest. We can have man-made forest, planned forest. Result: parks!
This brings to mind the unique and exemplary accomplishment of rich men like the Ayalas. You know the Ayalas, they are noted not only for their superb business acumen; they are also famous for their love of beauty and arts. One of them is an accomplished artist. But I am sure, all of them are art lovers. They collect many art works.
But one thing that they have done has given me a spark idea HOW TO SOLVE OUR ECOLOGICAL PROBLEMS, AND THE PROBLEM OF POVERTY OR THE LACK OF FOOD, CITY CONGESTION AND A HOST OF MANY INTER-RELATED PROBLEMS TO MENTION THEM ALL WOULD CAUSE YOUR MIND TO SPIN.
So, I will not list all those problems here. I would instead list the one major solution, and here it is: FOLLOW THE AYALA’S VERSION OF LAND BEAUTIFICATION (THEY CALL IT “EDEN ON EARTH” if I got it right, in
In short, we follow the rich: art combined with business or livelihood. All planned. We will not plant a tree without planning its location very well. Our small piece of land shall look like a miniature Ayala’s Eden and Cojuangco’s orchard and ranch! Beauty and fruit trees and livestock, even flowers and bees and honey will feature our respective small Eden.
No, I am not talking about pioneering. Actually this vision of beauty in my heart and mind has been all along done by the Americans, each family I guess. I am just saying that we follow them. Let us remove the thorns and thistles, the wilderness, the concept and fear of wild untamable forest and convert all wild forests (if that were possible) into clean, people and even child-friendly forest, yes, a sort of parks. Each forest turned into clean and safe parks. No more thick bushes with those poisonous and dangerous cobras, etc. Just friendly animals. We can do that. We can conquer the wild forests, we can tame the wilderness. We need not destroy them. We must not.
All I dream for every Filipino family and every family on earth for that matter is to have a piece of land each, say, 3 hectares for the average family, lumber trees, fruit trees, plants, grains, flowers, grasses -- all useful, no thorns and thistles, -- all well arranged, managed or trimmed to produce beauty and life (food and profits).
I know many European and American families have achieved this dream of little personal Eden here on earth. But few among the Filipinos have tasted this wonderful life. Only the taipans and other rich who are very few.
But the people, though poor they are, can transform their small lots into oasis of love and beauty, by not only thinking of food but also of aesthetics – of beauty. All we can do as leaders and teachers is place the mind of Ayala and Cojuangco into their mind and presto, we will see beautiful places all around, no more wild forests and no more wilderness.
Food and beauty.
It can be possible. For those who have small pieces of land, what is needed is let your heart dream and draw. You do not need millions of pesos or dollars. You only need imagination or creativity. And you have it, only it is suppressed by the daily toil. Deep inside your heart, you are a creature of beauty and creativity. Just do not let the daily toils and heavy pressure of poverty make your heart poor. Allow rich imaginations in your heart. Well, it does not mean you go to the moon or to America to find Eden or paradise. We can make our forest or wilderness or our neighborhood a paradise.
But mind you, this will not be possible if LOVE IS ABSENT IN OUR HEART. Let us first love God our creative Father above all and our neighbor as ourselves. For only Love can remove all hindrances to beauty, happiness, peace and abundance. What are these hindrances? Fear, worry, anger, hate, hatred, lust, greed, selfishness and other negative emotions. Replace them with love for God, neighbor including the animals and vegetation, yes, love the whole beauty in Nature as well as love yourself, then, this world – or at least your world – will become a paradise.
I do not wish to replace heaven with our earthly little Eden’s because I do not wish man to prefer earth to heaven. Some ugliness and misery are needed to make man wish to leave earth and prefer to go to heaven. And the key and the path is LOVE. And this love should not contain any trace of hate, not towards God, nor towards neighbor nor towards self. It should be love, all throughout. Human love is not all love; it is also hate: hate towards neighbor and hate or ingratitude towards God, and as a matter of fact, its much vaunted love of self would usually turn into hate towards self as its over-indulgence and vices would turn out to be! So, human love is not real love at all. Love to be true and real, should be perfect, hence, inclusive of God, neighbor and self. You cannot love your self and hate your neighbor and call that combination “love”! You cannot love your neighbor and ignore God and then call that formulation as “love”! No, it contains hate. It is not pure love. It will not work. For hate is a destroyer. You will not prosper. You will not live forever by that means.
Therefore, let us pursue perfect, that is, all-encompassing love. And when you have love, suddenly your ugly earth will undergo some transformation: it will start to become part of heaven, literally. Actual beauty will follow the peace, happiness and inner beauty you come to first possess without your heart and mind. Then, also material prosperity. Love will “automatically” cause all powers including yours to work together to cause to produce all of these love’s sweet fruits!
Then, we will no longer see squatters, no more ghettos, no more squalor, no more crowded cities, no more congested streets, but wide broad space composed of little Edens dotting all across the land.
But, of course, you must first give land to the landless, three hectares per family will do! That is a starting point of exercising love of God.
That is God’s will. So, if you price your salvation more than your haciendas, then, consider what I have just told you.
