Insects - Gems in Your Backyard

Insects - Gems in Your Backyard

In memory of Dell H Grecia, journalist

Above, female cicadas are attracted by the
singing male (topmost); molted skin is
what is left after the adult has emerged
(lower photo).

Dell H Grecia
Columnist, Backyard Ventures
Women's Journal

Your backyard may be full of “gems,” if it is planted to various vegetable., ornamental and herbal plants. A mini-pond tilapia , catfish (hito), or the so-called Pangasius can also add to the riches of your garden. And your joy will surely increase when harvest time comes.

But there are other gems in your backyard, which you may not be even aware of. These are the different insects which live in your garden.

My friend Dr. Abe V. Rotor, an entomologist by profession, recently shared with me a good lesson on insects, we would certainly miss nature’s sweetest sugar (honey), finest fabric (silk), and mysterious fig (Smyrna fig).

We would be having less and less of luscious fruits and succulent vegetables. As such, we would not have enough food to eat because insects are the chief pollinators. They also serve as cheap food for fishes and other animals. They are a major link in the food chain, the columns of a biological Parthenon.

According to Prof. Rotor, without insects, the earth would also be littered with the dead bodies of plants and animals. Insects are the co-workers of decomposition, along with bacteria and fungi, as they prepare for the life of the neat generation by converting dead tissues into organic materials and ultimately into inorganic forms, thus helping bridge the gap between the living and the non- living world.

Ecologically, Dr. Rotor explains that insects are the barometer of the kind of environment we live in. A pristine environment attracts beneficial insects, while a damaged one breed pests and diseases.

A. Insects Dominate the Animal World

Insects are our best friends. They are little helpers in our vegetable gardens- pollinating flowers and preying on pests.

Prof. Rotor relates that we cannot escape from insects: good or bad, beneficial or harmful. In terms of species, there are seven insects out of ten animal organisms on earth. Insects comprise 800,000 kinds, including their relatives- lobsters, shrimps, spiders, ticks, centipedes, millipedes and scorpions. Phylum Arthropoda would then comprise 80 percent of all animal organisms. To compare, plants make up only half a million species.

How have these minute insects outlived such giants as dinosaurs and mammoths? What is the secret behind their longevity?

Ants, termites and bees, according to Prof. Rotor, are the so-called social insects. Their caste system, intact and strict, has long been regarded as a model of man’s quest for a perfect society. It inspired the building of such highly autocratic civilizations as the Egyptian and Roman Empires, and the monarchical Aztecs and Mayans.

B. Insects are Good Defenders

Take the case of the butterflies and moths. Prof. Rotor says their active time is not only well defined (diurnal or nocturnal), but their food is highly specific to a plant or group of plants and their parts. Their life cycle allows either accelerated or suspended metamorphosis, depending on the prevailing conditions in the environment. This is a feat no other animal can do more efficiently. The young of a dragonfly called nymph is as fearful a hunter in water as the adult is in the air. Apparently this is this is the reason behind its legendary name.

The praying mantis, on the other hand, carries a pair of ax-and-vise. A bee brandishes a poisonous dagger, while a white tussock moth is cloaked with stinging barbs. A stink bug, for its part, sprays corrosive acid on eyes or skin. The weevil has an auger snout, the grasshopper grins with shear-like mandibles, and the mosquito pricks with a long, contaminated needle.

The beetle, according to Prof. Rotor, brings us to the medieval age. A knight in full battle gear! Chitin, which makes up its armor called exoskeleton, has yet to be successfully copied in the laboratory. Same with the light of the firefly, which is the most efficient of all lights on earth.

Imagine that: aphids, scale insects and some dipterans are capable of paedogenesis. That is, the ability of an immature insect to produce young even before reaching maturity!

Indeed, King Solomon was wise, Prof. Rotor affirms, in halting his army so that another army - an army of ants - can pass. Killer ants and killer bees destroy anything that impede their passage, including livestock and humans.

C. Insects are the Best Acrobats

Because they are small, insects can ride on the wind and current, find easy shelter, and are less subjected to injury when they fall. Also, their small size requires relatively less energy than bigger organisms do. All of these contribute to their persistence and worldwide distribution. Insects can even survive major disasters, Prof. Rotor adds.

Insects, like the crickets, are “musicians.” While their sounds are music to the many of us, they are actually coded sounds similar to our own communication. Cicadas, beetles, and grasshoppers have their own “languages.”

Termites and bees, on the other hand also have their own language, which comes in the form of chemical signals known as pheromones. It is because of them that we are now studying pheromones in humans.

D. Love of Nature, Love of God

As you work in your backyard, nature invites you to be loving; when loves dwells in you, then you begin to feel the spirit of God.

My friend Prof. Rotor was so engrossed in his study of insects that he was inspired to compose two verses for a praying mantis:

Mantis

Praying or preying you’re God sent,
You pray for rain, you share our peace;
You prey on the pest that feeds on crops,
Two lives have you all in one piece.

Your friendly gaze is for a man’s grim
Kneeling in the art of the strangler,
Yet a friend you are to the farmer,
So welcome, shy, friendly killer. ~

Women's Journal 2000

Singing Cicada

                                                            Singing Cicada

Dr Abe V Rotor

Cicada (Magicicada septemdicim) (NatGeo photo credit)

The hot summer ends in rejoice;

the air is filled with cheerful sound

of your loud and crispy voice,

calling a bride you’ll be bound.

You celebrate with the first rain

of May, and in the morning after,

you sing with high pitched strain

in clear and precise meter.

Sing, sing like the great Caruso,

Song to Celia and Schubert’s Serenade;

carefree you’re like Valentino

counting the days of a renegade.

Man may sing better and without end,

and perhaps his bride is more cute,

still he envies you his little friend

for your bride is forever mute. ~

Note: Only the male cicada sings, the femate is mute.

Living with Nature, AVRotor

Allergy and Immunology Forging Ahead in 2021 Convention

Allergy and Immunology Forging Ahead in 2021

 Philippine Society of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, Inc.

19th Annual (Virtual) Convention September 2 to 4, 2021

Chronicles of an MD: The COVID-19 Journey
Dr Jonas Del Rosario, Spokesperson of the Philippine General Hospital

Response to the lecture by Dr. Abercio V. Rotor, Ph.D.

On behalf of Dr Arturo B Rotor clan, I wish to greet all of you in this convention, and to Dr Jonas Del Rosario who shares not only his insights but real experience with COVID-19, he himself a survivor of the pandemic, and one bereft of his loved ones to the same disease.

Our guest and speaker, Dr Del Rosario does not only belong to a new breed of heroes in our fight against COVID-19, but as a chronicler, one who writes directly from the battlefield, so to speak, putting substance to details, organization, compassion and objectivity.

Dr Del Rosario challenges us to deepen our resolve to fight and win over the deadly pandemic. In a TV interview, he endorses four advocates that are like pillars of defence, namely.

1. Know the enemy with scientific basis,
2. Conquer fear, never lose hope,
3. Keep the Bayanihan spirit  alive, and
4. Let’s take care of one another, which the core value of humanity

Let me reflect on the following scenarios, and allay fears of a runaway pandemic.

1. Let’s heed Nature’s call. Good health is primordial. Let’s preserve the integrity of our environment, particularly against all forms of pollution.

2. COVID-19 is a wake up call to world order. Institutions are being challenged – family, government, church , school, and not the least, the medical profession. It is a wake up call to the UN, EU, ASEAN, G7, and other leagues of nations.

3. The humbling effect of COVID-19 on man’s lofty dreams, warns us of the biblical Tower of Babel Syndrome. Thus there is need to redefine the meaning of The Good Life, and True Happiness. We must look deeper into the meaning of Progress.

4. There is no panacea, no single cure.  Collective effort is the key to win the battle. The pandemic is a global concern, no one is spared, irrespective of economic status, race, faith, ideology. “The world’s a stage and each one of us has a role to play,” says a great dramatist. 

5. We must deeply reflect on man’s relationship with his Creator – We cannot play God through science and philosophy and theology, and other fields.

Our search for the meaning of life, is first of all, look inward for the inner and better person which resides in each and every one of us. It is The Little Prince in a book of the same title.

The resilience of mankind to crisis has been tested before, in fact throughout history, Let us not let our world enter into a Neo-Dark Age in postmodern times.

These are the times that try men’s soul – the soul that elevates us as humans – Homo sapiens. The defining moments of our lives is when we fight for a cause – a cause that others may live, and that our world become a better place to live in. We are going to win this battle, with a new breed of heroes rising among us, from us and with us. And, "walang iwanan."

Let us rally behind the theme of this convention, and behind our speaker – Dr Jonas Del Rosario, who is not only spokesperson of the Philippine General Hospital, but of all of us pitted against the biggest battle - the very survival of the human race.

Again, thank you, and may we all find meaning in whatever we do to curb the devastating effects of COVID-19. ~ 

Vocation Stories of Traditional Healers in Fuga Island

 Vocation Stories of Traditional Healers in Fuga Island   

 "It all started with a series of dreams where I see myself healing the sick." - Patrocinio Visario, Sr., 46 years old; 33 years as a healer (Sitio Mudoc)

Dr Abe V Rotor     

Living with Nature - School on Blog

This article was derived from a dissertation (doctoral research) conducted by Dr Ronel P. Dela Cruz in Fuga Island.  It  pertains to the dynamic interplay between the traditional healers of Fuga (factor) and their healing practices (process) that continue to create both positive acceptance and transformation from the people (causes) that facilitate changes in the life of the people in the island (effect).

  

Here is a part of Dr Dela Cruz's translations into English Ilokano conversations with three of a number of healers who are regarded as wisdom keepers, consultants, fathers and mothers of the communities, and dutiful citizens.

    
 1.  Bienvenido Pablo, 70 years old; 31 years as healer (Sitio Mudoc)

      When I was young, our elders taught me how to recite the oraciones (Latin prayers) with faith. This was my initiation, the first step to be qualified as healer. After I memorized the prayers, the power to heal was passed on to me by our great elders. They told me to use the power to heal on Good Friday. As a healer, I encountered many unseen spirits in this world. I encountered them many times especially in the farm and in the woods. These are both good and bad spirits. The aplaw or bad spirits touch and cause people to be sick and they are required to communicate to them. Those who have an encounter with bad spirits have uncommon experiences: they may cut an uncommon tree, kill a peculiar chicken, touch a lone turtle in the woods, etc. People come to see me every time they have sick members of their family. I have been doing this for thirty-one years. Many members of the community believe that I can properly diagnose (maimaan) the cause of sickness of my patients.

      I pray every time I begin to diagnose and heal any sick member of the village. It is in praying that the spirit is able to communicate what I should do to treat the sick. Sometimes they are revealed in my dreams. I perform a ritual offering to appease the spirits whom the sick person encountered either in the farm or in the woods. Members are required to prepare food like meat, rice, wine, nganga, etc. as atang (offering). This is a form of communication where I dialogue with the spirits and ask them to restore the health of the mortal being. As a midwife (partera) in the village for many generations, I prescribed herbal medicines especially when the mother has difficulty giving birth. I give them juice extract of young banana leaves. At the same time, I ask the husband to pour water on the roof, catch it, mix it with soil, and give it as a drink to the labouring mother. To ease the difficulty of his wife, the husband wears his bolo on his waist and steps over his labouring wife. After the mother gives birth, I burn an anglem, a piece of old cloth, to drive bad spirits away from the mother and the child. For children who have til-i, I recommend akot-akot to be fried, mixed with water and serve as a drink. Alternatives can be tayum leaves (Indigo), or ground garlic. For those who have boils, I use mint leaves mixed with lime (apog).

      They look on me primarily as a healer. That is my contribution to the community. As one of the elders in the village, they also seek my advice concerning communal issues. I can say that I am credible to the community because people continue bringing their sick to me. We traditional healers are on the forefront when people get sick. I gained confidence in myself as a healer through my works and faith. Strong faith is necessary especially when I wrestle with spirits and diagnose my patient. I think this makes me credible to the community. That wellness and good health can be experienced in the community through its healers is affirmed by people coming to see us when they are sick, entrusting their loved ones to us.

      2. Pedro Agarpao, 57 years old; 27 years as healer (Sitio Bubog)

      My calling began when I asked to pray to St. Mary of Visitacion for three days. The elders in the village asked me to memorize and recite 20 oraciones. After three days, I received my power to heal through an apparition. My daughter also witnessed the apparition. We made a nine-day novena as a sign of thanksgiving for the gift of faith and healing. My healing is sustained through daily prayers. I heal for free; I was even invited to heal in other provinces like Ilocos, Baguio and Pangasinan. People get sick because they displease the spirits on this island. When they call me to heal their loved ones, I ask them to intensify their prayers. On my part, I will wait for the instructions to be revealed to me in my dreams. Once I have it, I will write the orasyon and prescribe the medicine (herbal). I even asked them to make a visit to the Our Lady of Piat if sickness stays for a week. 

Majority of the people in the village believe in my capacity to heal the sick. However, I also demand from them to do their share like prayer and stay away from the abodes of the spirits. When treating a serious illness, I ask the assistance of other healers in the island. As a healer, I am always challenged to be a model to the villagers by promoting good relationships with all community members. In the midst of poverty and difficulties, we always hope and pray that each member of the community will be blessed with abundant life. People see us as a resource. Instead of spending money for their hospitalization on the mainland, the healers in the island are their refuge. Faith in other people in times of sickness is evident.

      3. Patrocinio Visario, Sr., 46 years old; 33 years as a healer (Sitio Mudoc)

       It all started with a series of dreams where I see myself healing the sick. But I do not know who sent me to heal. So I consulted my grandfather who is also a healer in the village and confirmed that I had the power to heal and that I have to undergo an initiation. He asked me to read and memorize the oraciones (Latin prayers) which I will be using in order to heal.  At first, I was hesitant because we differ in religion but my grandfather admonished me that my calling to heal goes beyond religion. I use herbal medicines coupled with prayers. Aside from this, I also interview my patient so that I can understand where s/he is coming from. I have to admit that there were times that I am not sure what medicine to prescribe because of the complexity of the illness. I prescribe medicinal plants to my patients. When my patients apparently encountered bad spirits in their farms or in the woods, I perform the atang to communicate with the spirits. Sometimes, this is very difficult depending on the strength of the spirits encountered by my patient. If the sickness escalates in the village, 

I asked the other members of the village to perform a religious procession during day and night to drive away the evil spirits who want to dwell in the community. Majority of the people here in the village recognizes my ability to heal. But I see it as a form of service to them because they come to see/fetch me any time to heal the sick member of their family. It is also a challenge to promote good relationship and wellness in the community. I think this is my contribution. When one is sick, we are gathered together and share our community life - struggles, resources, dreams for the children, and the like. When there is sickness in the village, this is also the time to reflect as a community. Heads of the family come together and devise ways to prevent the sickness. Of course, there are many solutions to our problems but being together during times of crisis is primary.

      From  Isla Fuga: Sacred Scapes, Ronel P dela Cruz, published by St Paul University QC, 2012.  Dr Ronel P dela Cruz is presently the director of Research and Publication Center of St Paul University Quezon City, and holder of the Mother Mary Anne de Tilly Professorial Chair.  An alumnus of the Asian Social Institute, Dr Dela Cruz is the founding chairman of the Francis Jeremy Educational Program whose beneficiaries are students from the Babuyan Islands. He has presented his researches in national and regional conferences like the Hong Kong University and the National University of Singapore.   

Fuga Island is an island in the municipality of Aparri, Cagayan with an area of 100 km², it constitutes one of 42 barangays of Aparri along with the neighboring islets of Barit (4.8 km²) and Mabag (0.7 km²). Though under the jurisdiction of mainland Aparri, it is part of the Babuyan Archipelago, the second-northernmost island group of the Philippines. The highest peak is Mount Nanguringan in the northeast, with an elevation of 191 meters. According to the 2000 population census, it has 1,786 people in 312 households. The principal settlement is Naguilian (Musa) village on the southern coast.The island still retains a traditional culture, a manifestation of which is the annual construction of a small straw imitation boat that is floated out to sea. The tradition began in 1656 when the island was almost invaded by British ships, prompting islanders to make a similar replica of a boat, thus preventing the island's annexation by Great Britain. (Wiki)

Lesson on former Paaralang Bayan sa Himpapawid (People's School-on-Air), author with Ms Melly C Tenorio  738 DZRB AM Band, 8 to 9 evening class, Monday to Friday [www.pbs.gov.ph]

The Art of Loafing. The lighter side of Human Nature 7

The lighter side of Human Nature 7

The Art of Loafing

Loafing, the habit and the art,
robs and rewards:
he by the hearth falls asleep
in spring; and who fishes ideas
with a fishing pole. 

Dr Abe V Rotor
Living with Nature School on Blog

UST graduate students under the author as their professor, on a field trip, 

Peñablanca, Pampanga, 2010

Be like Thoreau and Darwin,
world's greatest loafers,
toying ideas that shock the world
Of Civil Disobedience,
and Survival of the Fittest.

For the mind soars to the sky
by imagination more than reason,
and time is kindest
when the body stops working
and the spirit calm,

To nurture the hidden genius,
in sparks and spurts,
otherwise spilled to waste
in worries and cares,
and undue haste.

Churchill by the Thames,
painted peace,
when the sky was burning,
and thunder and bomb
were one fearful sound.

Audubon's birds were real
like living specimens,
with time at his command;
and Solomon halted his army
to let the ants pass in band.

Loafing, the habit and the art,
robs and rewards:
he by the hearth falls asleep
in spring; and who fishes ideas
with a fishing pole. ~

Observing LINGGO NG WIKA in a Play School - Dawn of Consciousness of National Identity

Observing LINGGO NG WIKA in a Play School - Dawn of Consciousness of National Identity 

(The Philippines used to hold a week-long celebration, from August 13 to 19, every year, until President Ramos declared it should be month-long starting 1997)

Love of national language must be instilled in early age. National language is the foundation of cultural values and identity of a country and its people.

College and university professors in Filipino are up in arms against the memorandum of the Commission on Higher Education/CHED Memorandum Order (CMO) No. 20, Series of 2013. This memorandum aims to remove Filipino as a subject to be taught in college by 2016 as part of the new General Education Curriculum (GEC).

“Removing Filipino as a subject in the new GEC is not just a local issue; it is a moral issue that goes against the integrity of our race.” – Prof. Patrocinio Villafuerte, professor and writer. (From "Removing Filipino as a subject in college: A betrayal in the name of business?" By Ina A R Silverio)
 
Dr Abe V Rotor

Growing up with the national language guided by parents and teachers. 

Kill the language and kill the culture;

Kill the culture and kill the people; 

kill the people and kill the country;

kill their history and their memory; 

Ad infinitum to global doom.

                                                                   - AV Rotor

                   

Mother at home (Mommy Anna) and mother in school (Teacher Joy) for young Mackie. .
Growing up in a beautiful Philippines in actual drawing experience.

Linggo ng wika is linked with other celebrations such as Nutrition Week, Health week, United Nation week. (Young Mackie's school work.)  

 
Hands-on learning with classmate and parents block building (left), and food preparation with mommy.  Learning our national language requires such attention 
and guidance.  

Poems by Dr Jose Rizal on the importance of language

TO MY FELLOW CHILDREN (Sa Aking Mga Kababata, 1869)

Whenever people of a country truly love
The language which by heav'n they were taught to use
That country also surely liberty pursue
As does the bird which soars to freer space above.

An Open Letter to School Principals, Teachers, and Parents

For language is the final judge and referee
Upon the people in the land where it holds sway;
In truth our human race resembles in this way
The other living beings born in liberty.

Whoever knows not how to love his native tongue
Is worse than any best or evil smelling fish.
To make our language richer ought to be our wish
The same as any mother loves to feed her young.

Tagalog and the Latin language are the same
And English and Castilian and the angels' tongue;
And God, whose watchful care o'er all is flung,
Has given us His blessing in the speech we claim,

Our mother tongue, like all the highest that we know
Had alphabet and letters of its very own;
But these were lost -- by furious waves were overthrown
Like bancas in the stormy sea, long years ago.

The famous poem was a nationalistic undertaking to promote the usage of Tagalog language by the Filipino people. The poem “To My Fellow Children” was believed to be the national hero’s first written Tagalog poem at the age of eight.

"This morning I met silence" and other poems

Selected Verses from "USTogether"

A Thomasian Faculty Anthology

 

"While power leads man toward arrogance, 

poetry reminds him of his limitations." 

- John F Kennedy as cited by the late Dean Ophelia A Dimalanta PhD, UST Arts and Letters in the book's Foreword, ("USTogether" A Thomasian Faculty Anthology by 

Professor Erlita D Mendoza, March 1998). 

Paintings by Dr Abe V Rotor

This morning I met silence

Armando F. de Jesus, PhD 

Dean UST Arts and Letters

In the dark mists

this morning I met silence.

What soothing voice!

This morning

silence has sounds,

darkness has light.

To hear sounds, one must be

steeped in silence.

To see light, one must be

enveloped in darkness.

I saw light in darkness.

I heard sound greet me

from silence.

                                       

Morning by a Nymphaea Pond in acrylic by AVR

In mornings like this,

silence stills the noise I hear within.

Darkness tempers

the blinding light of my knowing.

In mornings like this

there is calm.

I have peace.

        A View of the Valley

Mountain Stream in acrylic AVR

The valley's still, the fog is thick and gray,

Many a dream is born and gone astray.

A beacon beaming once, now ringed with light,

Where once a moth has died in a spirited flight.

It keeps eternal whisperings as the wind passes by,

Bringing sweet memories and new promises,

Where a beacon beams though now ringed with light,
Where another moth dies in another flight.

                             Abercio V. Rotor, Graduate School

Washerwoman

Today, I'll wash

The robe of emptiness

Until it is sun-bleached white

Scrubbing blotches of splitting

Afterthoughts, pain rubs hard

Against the lesions of wrinkled

.Ashen hands hurting repeatedly

Upon each stroke of reminiscence.

It's half done now,

But  the suds still billow

Into cumulus froth, bubbles hide

All residue of misery

I wring tightly this orphan feeling

Till every longing drips their last.

I’ll hang my heart to dry

Sheet clean in the long line

Of forgetting and forgiving.

•                    Ferdinand M. Lopez, Arts and Letters

Scavengers

(Manggahan Dumpsite.Quezon City)

Many years ago

You had another name,

Gleaners, and work was also game.

Now it's all work

And the art of the vulture,

And those with fangs and ugly mane.

But if none is waste and waste is useful

Would your breed thrive just the same?

              Abercio V. Rotor, Graduate School

 Quiet

The morning failed

to keep its promise of rain.

The sun shone

across the silent

sober place.

And standing idly

in this half-reflected

gleam,

I felt a nameless,

unfamiliar cheer:

A pleasure secret

and austere.

      Nancy N. Tabirara, Arts and Letters

Fishing after rain in acrylic AVR

Paskong 'El Nino

(Ang bawa't pasko ay paskong el nino

sapagka't ang dahilan, buod, at puno't dulo

ng ating pagdiriwang ay ang pagsilang ng sanggol na mesiyas:

EI Nino Hesus )

Nawa'y gawin ka niyang mapagbigay

Tulad ng Ulan,

Dugtong-dugtong kung pumatak

Bagama't minsa'y ambong-Iuha lamang.

Nawa'y gawin ka niyang malaya

Tulad ng Ilog,

Walang patid kung dumaloy

Bagama't minsa'y usad-estero lamang.

Nawa'y gawin ka niyang mapagmahal

Tulad ng Dagat,

Walang maliw ang debosyon sa dalampasigan

Bagama't minsa'y lambing-alon lamang.

Nawa'y gawin ka niyang mapaglikha

Tulad ng Lupa,

Bawa't patak ng ulan, daloy ng ilog, alan ng dagat

Ay nagiging salita sa kanyang sinapupunan

Isinisilang sa daigdig

Bilang bulaklak at luntiang kariktan.

                          Rolando V. dela Rosa,OP

Kaingin

There is loneliness

In gazing at mountains

where many trees die.

The hills glisten red, then blue.

The rains will bring

tears of mud.

(But until then .. )

Where have all the flowers gone?

The avalanche of fires

will overcome wanton caterpillars,

there is no place for butterflies

this time.

Flowers, trees

sigh -

they wither,

they sputter,

and then lie

in homage to the sky.

Smoldering,

crackled splinters

of lives once spent.

Requiem to a Fallen Log in oil by AVR

The winds cease their whispers

as dying embers are laid to rest

at passing of the day.

In requiem,

finally.

          Rodel E. Aligan, OP

Be Thou the Stewards

Harvestime in acrylic AVR

In the beginning

The earth was bare

And Chaos ruled.

And then a gentle gaze,

The tender voice of Love

Brought forth the rolling hills,

The shady woods,

The lambent murmuring seas,
The placid lakes,

The gleaming galaxies,

The glowing dawn and soothing twilight .

Man and woman .

Then flowers bloomed!

And the voice of Love

In solemn admonition rang,

"Be thou the Stewards of these gifts."

In the silence of our hearts

We hear this truth.

As guardian of these bounties

We must preserve,

Conserve the affluence of nature,

Tranquility of woods and forests,

Protect the lakes and seas.

And then we can indeed rejoice

And say, ''I've done my share!"

Elena P. Polo, Science ~