Table
of Contents
Introduction
Part 1 – Community Life - Realities and Challenges
1.
Gross National Happiness (GNH): A measure of growth &
development
2.
Twenty philosophies of Ageing Gracefully
3.
In
Search of Meaning in the Golden Years of Life: 30 Scenarios of Our Postmodern World
4.
Optimism:
The future is much better than the past and present
5.
The
Power of Mindfulness
6.
Functional
Literacy
7.
Let's Save our Children from the Tender Trap of Commercialism
8.
Computer Addiction Leads Us to Vices and Drug
9.
Life Begins at Retirement
Part 2 – Understanding Nature, the Great Teacher
1.
Nature
is the Mother of Invention and Serendipity
2.
Ecological
Garden as Science Laboratory
3.
Slow
Down and Enjoy Life with Peace of Mind
4.
Applied
Chronobiology: Take Heed of Your Biological Clock
5.
Biological
Basis of Selfishness and Selflessness
6.
Devolution of Life
7. Dimorphism - Functional
Anomaly in Nature
8.
Allergy and the Environment
Part 3 – Keeping an Environment-Friendly
Relationship
1.
The
Making of Nata de Coco Shoes
2.
Twelve Practical Tips for the Home
3.
The Practice and Value of Gleaning
4.
Save
those spent ball pens. Refill!
5.
Harvesting Rainwater: The Art and Practice
6.
Practical
Home Technologies
· Practical Hydroponics and Aeroponics
· Liquid Fertilizer
· Make your Own Mineral Water
· Natural Kitchen Scrub and Sandpaper
· Multipurpose Banana Leaves
· Grow Native Onion Leek at Home
· Garlic Sprouts, Anyone?
· Boiled Jackfruit Seeds
· Urban Home Composting
Part 4 – Nature – Great Provider of The Good Life
1.
Banana saved my life and restored my health
2.
Discovering the Least Known Fruits
·
Aratiles - petite berry children love
·
Arius - Batanes' signature tree
· Karmai: the "Acid Fruit" ?
· Pomegranate
- Ancient, Sacred Fruit
· Fragrant
Limonsito (Triphasia trifolia)
3.
Wild Vegetables in Times of Hunger
4.
Ludong The tastiest fish in the world and the most
expensive, too
5.
Ipon or dulong - A special delicacy of Ilocanos
6.
We can grow wheat in the Philippines
Part 5 – Conservation of Natural
Resources
1.
La Mesa Dam: Heart of the Angat-Ipo-La Mesa Water
System
2.
Lichens and
Mosses are Nature's Indicator of a Healthy Environment
3. Acacia Tree and Drynaria Fern
- More than Commensalism
4.
A tree fell and took with it its tenants and symbionts
5.
Death
of a Living Fossil - Oliva (Cycad)
6.
Forest of the Future: The Ecology of Hedge Forests
7.
We are Living in a Plastic World
8.
I am Nature Crucified
9.
The Two Worlds of the House Sparrow
Part 6 - Nature and Humanities
1.
Tranquility
Reigns on a Wall Mural
2.
Grains Museum Re-opened After 30 Years
3.
Dioramas
Depicting the Philippine Grains Industry at NFA Grains Museum
4.
Books - the Greatest Treasure of Mankind
5.
The Plus Factors of Life
6.
What makes an unfinished work of art a masterpiece?
Supplemental Articles (Fillers)
1. Living Prism
2. Markus before a Wall Mural
3. The Blue Stream
4. Decorative Rug Vendor
5. “What I lived for.”
6. Buena mano, a happy disposition
7. A Heart on the Wall
8. Bleeding Heart of the Forest
9. Teacher’s Image According to her Pupil
10. Ants in Exodus
11. The Last Fire Tree in Summer
12. Takip-Kuhol
Abercio V. Rotor, Ph.D.
Books Written by Dr AV Rotor
Acknowledgment
Impressions
Number of Pages - 286 Introduction
Abercio V. Rotor, Ph.D.
Living with
Nature in Our Home and Community is a sequel to Living
with Nature Handbook, and Living with Nature in Our Times, published
by the University of Santo Tomas.
This new
volume is divided into six parts. Part 1 – Community Life - Realities and
Challenges has 8 chapters dealing with Gross National Happiness (GNH), a
new measure of growth and development.
There are three articles addressed to those advancing in age: Twenty
Philosophies of Ageing Gracefully, In Search for Meaning in the Golden Years of
Life, and Life Begins at Retirement.
On the part of the young, there are two articles to caution them of
today’s dilemma: Let’s Save Our Children from the Tender Trap of
Consumerism, and Computer Addiction Leads to Vices and Drugs. On the
other hand, these articles on Optimism, and the Power of Stillness, give
a sense of comfort and hope.
The second
part consists of articles on Nature as the Great Teacher, among them are
Nature is Mother of Invention, and the Garden as Science Laboratory.
Slow Down and Enjoy Life has a parallel message with allergy control
through clean environment (Allergy and the Environment). Understanding Nature explores such topics as Devolution
of Life, Dimorphism, and Chronobiology, which is a natural way to
maintain good health by taking heed of our biological clock.
The third
part reminds us to uphold a friendly relationship with the environment,
starting with Practical Home Technologies in nine ways, coupled with 12 Practical
Tips in household management. Save,
is a household call through Harvesting Rainwater, Practice and Value of
Gleaning, and recycling by Refilling Spent Ballpens, as practical
examples every home can implement.
Part 4
reminds us to recognize and value Nature as Great Provider of The Good Life.
Why not? Even the seemingly weeds in
the field and backyard are valuable especially in difficult times. Wild Vegetables in Times of Hunger are
surprisingly plentiful and nutritious, so with certain fruits taken for
granted in lieu of commercial ones. Take
the case of Aratiles, Karmai, Pomegranate, Limonsito, and the like. This
section endorses the cultivation of new but proven crops (We can grow wheat
in the Philippines), and protection of indigenous ones, for their many uses
and advantages (Banana saved my life and restored my health). Likewise,
the section advocates the protection of our exotic natural resources like Ludong
and Ipon.
Conservation
of Natural Resources occupies the fifth section of this book, starting with
water resource (La Mesa Dam: Heart of the Angat-Ipo-La Mesa Water System). How aware are we of the conditions of our
surroundings? Here are indicators through these three articles: Lichens and Mosses are Nature’s Indicator of
a Healthy Environment, Acacia and Drynaria Fern, Forest of the Future, the
last article showing a model combining agriculture and forestry (agro-forestry). Three articles warn us of the consequences of
man’s destructive behavior and folly towards affluence: I am Nature
Crucified, Death of a Living Fossil, and We are Living in a Plastic
World.
The last
part of the book opens to the reader, enlarges the realm of art, which when
combined with nature in harmonious relationship, is called Humanities. Nature
and Humanities is the appropriate title of this final section which consists of
these articles: Tranquility Reigns on a Wall Mural, The Plus Factors of
Life. A holistic portrayal of nature
in the museum is vividly presented in Grains Museum Re-opened After 30 Years,
with accompanying details through Dioramas and Artifacts. The
return to books in combination with computers has reached a point of
reviving and enlarging the library, and extending and connecting it with home
libraries, thus preserving the integrity of Books - the Greatest Treasure of
Mankind. If at the end, one has not
finished his work that he has sincerely set to finish, do we consider his work
useless? Read What makes an
unfinished work of art a masterpiece?
Many of the
articles in this new volume were derived from three weblogs or (Blog). avrotor.blogspot.com (Living with
Nature School on Blog). It is extended
to Naturalism – the Eighth Sense, and a
third, A Naturalist World – Dr Abe V Rotor. The combined number of posts to date runs to
more than 5,000 articles, which pertain directly and indirectly to the titles
of these blogs, and based on the concept and realms of Multiple Intelligence.
Now and then, articles are re-posted, updated, enriched, combined into a series
of lessons for radio broadcast (e.g.TATAKalikasan Ateneo de Manila University
broadcast on Radyo Katipunan, and on former Paaralang Bayan sa
Himpapawid of Radyo ng Bayan). Articles derived from these sources,
among others, are organized for Workshop sessions (e.g. Children art workshop,
field lectures, demonstration, and exhibits).
This book is
an addition to the present pool of references and collection of library
materials in the Living with Nature Center in San Vicente, Ilocos Sur,
founded and managed by the Rotor Family.
The features of the center are:
art gallery, library and museum, botanical garden, and livelihood
projects. It receives visitors, mainly
researchers and students, and occasionally, tourists. Activities in the Center include organized
educational tour, field lecture and demonstration, art exhibit, research, radio
broadcast and publication. These
activities are regularly posted on the Internet via Facebook and Blog, and
published in the Bannawag Magazine (Okeyka Apong is a column of
Dr. A.V. Rotor). A good number is in
celebration with local, national, and international events, such as Teachers
Day, Children’s Month, Family Day, Book month, Arbor Day, and the like,
including public holidays.
The
importance of the series of books on Living with Nature, including this
new volume, is expounded by Dr. Lilian J. Sison, who was then the dean of the
graduate school of UST in the later part of my professorship in that
university. She said in her message in Living
with Nature in Our Times, that the book gives us practical knowledge that
elevates our awareness on three levels: that of our perception of the things
around us by our senses; that of our perception of the inner stimuli that
affect not only our physical being but our psyche and emotion; and the third
which occupies the highest level of awareness – that which is beyond mere
perception because it requires us to imagine, plan and anticipate the
future.
She said
that the book cautions us while walking on the busy lane of change, and reminds
us to retrain our senses, and hone our sensitivity to better appreciate the
best that life can offer. Only when we
are close to nature that we are able to truly appreciate its exquisiteness;
only when we heed the old folks’ advice can we truly appreciate the beauty and
bounty of nature. And by Living with
Nature in Our Home and Community. ~
Published by Sadiri Publishing
Quezon City, Philippines
sadiri publishing@gmail.com
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