DON'T CUT THE TREES, DON'T - 5 selected poems

DON'T CUT THE TREES, DON'T - 5 selected poems 

Book Foreword 
Ophelia A. Dimalanta, Ph.D.
Director, Center for Creative Writing and Studies; University of Santo Tomas 

  What makes this poetry collection by Abercio V Rotor specially significant is its ecological slant which gives it an added dimension rarely attributed to other poetry collections. Poet Rilke reminds the contemporary poet to “get out of the house” and bond with nature. 

 Most of the poems written today are introspective or retrospective written in the privacy of one’s room, smelling of deep dark crannies not only of the room but of one’s heart. 

 There is nothing wrong here. But we welcome this attempt to indeed “get out of the house” and establish kinship with every creeping, floating, flying creature outside our private nooks. It is a substantial collection, departing from the usual stale air of solitariness and narcissism which permeates most poetry today. 

 It is therefore, a welcome contribution to Philippine poetry in English, livened by visuals that add color to the poetic images. The oeuvre is not only pleasurable because of this. The poetic ability of the poet himself enriches the whole exciting poetic experience, a blurring of the line separating man from the rest of the living creatures outside. Every poem indeed becomes “flower in disguise” using the poet’s own words. Author's Note: The late Dr. Ophelia Dimalanta was Writer-in-Residence, and former Deam Arts and Letters, University of Santo Tomas

                          Ode to a Tree that Wears a Veil

                     

Acacia tree in its deciduous stage, is loaded with epiphytes,

 Ateneo de Manila University QC campus

                 

A veil to shield the sun,
A veil to keep from rain,
A veil to buffer the wind,
A veil to hide the view around,
A veil to muffle sweet sound,
When you wear your crown.

A veil to let the sunshine in,

A veil to welcome the rain,

A veil to dance in the wind,

A veil to view far beyond,

A veil to free those in bond,

When you lose your crown.

A veil to clothe the naked,

A veil to comfort the lonely,

A veil to feed the hungry,

A veil to house the lost.

A veil to welcome the dawn,

When you gain back your crown.

                  Leafless Tree by the Window

                                                                 Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches QC

I am a passing wind, I knock on the window pane,
The door is closed, the wall in deathly pallor;
The roof of rusting crimson, eaten by sun and rain.
I knock again - only silence returns my call.

I must have missed summer when everything here -
A single tree, a patch of grass - is a garden;
Long was my way fighting the dark heavy sky,
And autumn lulling all into deep slumber.

Fall is beautiful, but where are the good poets now?
Sleep and the flowers will come one by one;
But I am just a passing wind and soon I'll be gone.
I knock again - only silence returns my call.

                                       Deciduous Trees

                                                         Deciduous Trees in Acrylic AVR 

You lose your crown that you may gain
Freedom to reach out for the sky;
For the sun to bathe your whole being,
To raise the lowly where they lie.

The sky and ground now become one,
Renewing faith in new life to beam;
Rises the sun the prime mover all,
To flow through the living stream.

You litter the floor, keep in the rain,
Feed the microbes, the brute you tame,
Breaking the carbon back to its form,
And the genie for the next game.

Seasons may come and go, obedient
And humble are your ways untold;
Your old gene, it’s the key to loving
Your kin, and fighting the bold.

Against the wind and scanty rain;
The inner signal comes around
Ticking, then it comes, it is fall;
You have earned a bigger crown. ~

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Book Message
Armando F De Jesus, PhD
Dean, Faculty of Arts and Letters
University of Santo Tomas

"Don't Cut the Trees, Don't" is a collection of ecology poems and paintings of nature. The tree is taken to represent the environment. Each poem and each painting is like a leaf of a tree each revealing a little of the many marvels of this unique creation. Each poem and each painting is a plea on behalf of this new vision and of this new ethics.

Agoho Trees

Agoho Trees mural by the author and children: Marlo, Anna and Leo Carlo, SPUQC 2000

Each tree a mark of time,

From past to the age of space;

Of deeds, passing wind a chime,

Spreading peace and grace.

In handshake they seek across

The seas and to the stars,

For some brethren long lost

Bearing hurt and scars.

Strong against the storm,

Their timber will not give

Only to time and reform;

They stand as long as they live.

And many a man well in thought

Walks, arch above his head;

To honor what he had fought,

For the tears he had shed.

Walk to the gate, hurry,

The Sentinel will not wait;

Night falls, dark and dreary,

Go before it’s too late.

                  Ecology Prayer

Upland wall mural, author's residence San Vicente, Ilocos Sur 

                                                When my days are over,

let me lie down to sleep

on sweet breeze and earth

in the shade of trees

I planted in my youth;

and if I had not done enough,

make, make my kind live

to carry on the torch,

while my dust falls

to where new life begins –

even only an atom that I shall be;

let me be with you,

                                                 dear Mother Earth. ~

Dr Abe V Rotor and Dean Ophelia Dimalanta hold trophies won by the author’s previous books – Gintong Aklat Award (The Living with Nature Handbook, 2003) and National Book Award (Living with Nature in Our Times, 2008) in the presence of Fr Regent, and Dean Armando De Jesus of the UST Faculty of Arts and Letters.

Capture Armageddon

Capture Armageddon 

"Suffer the artists to capture

in vivid imagination, 

scenarios ahead of time,

ahead of others' vision."

Dr Abe V Rotor

Paintings in Acrylic by the author

 The Blast

 The Impact

The Breakdown 

When red is fire, black is death,

romance no longer in the air

and black a tragic beauty

of ultimate warfare.

Suffer the artists to capture

in vivid imagination, 

scenarios ahead of time,

ahead of others' vision.

Artists are at the frontline  

before the Armageddon

with colors, brush and pen 

into the night 'til dawn.~   

Folk Wisdom in Action - 5 Applications

Dr Abe V Rotor

1. Weeping Willow (Salix sp) - Insect Repellant and Air Freshener


The mere mention of this plant - weeping willow - evokes negative feelings. Imagine its growth habit, instead if being erect, it droops. Its branches hang freely downward, its dense lance-shape leaves hiding any view from underneath the tree and around. The tree curtains the banks of lakes and ponds, its heavy branches swaying with the current. Superstitious gardeners have second thought having the tree growing near the house.

But many of us don't realize that the plant is important not only as an ornamental. The leaves exude volatile eucalyptus- or camphor-like oil that is aromatic, it soothes tired feeling, and freshens the room. It is aromatherapy.

When crushed, the crude extract is a substitute of commercial insect repellant. Lightly rub on exposed part of the body with or without dilution of water and you will keep mosquitoes, flies and midges at bay. Place fresh or dried leaves under the bed and you drive bedbugs, lice and mites away. Powdered leaves rid chicken of lice (gayamo, Ilk.)

Do you practice smudging orchard trees? Add some dried leaves of weeping willow and you also fumigate the harmful insects. It works like "katol" - and is much safer.

Why not crush some leaves and place them in an open wide mouth bottle to serve as deodorant? Decorate the container like a corner chandelier or flower base, and all you need is replace now and then the crushed leaves with fresh ones. This is alternative to poisonous naphthalene.

If you need a repellant always ready for use, dry mature leaves of the plant, pulverize, add ethanol or ethyl alcohol to dissolve the extract. Filter and keep the filtrate in a tight bottle. This is mother stock, which you can dilute with water when you use it as skin insect repellant. You can adjust the dilution from mild to strong, depending on who is going to use it, and how annoying are the pests.

Why don't you plant weeping willow in your garden? Just keep it out of view from the window if someone complains.

2. Banana Stalk for Packaging

This is to re-introduce an old folks' way of packaging using folded banana stalk as shown in these photos. It is highly efficient, versatile, economical and environment-friendly.


Flowers of himbaba-o or alokong (Ilk), a wild vegetable can remain fresh even after three days inside  banana stalk. A single stalk is stripped from the trunk and folded according to desired size.

This method of packaging is ideal for live fish like dalag and hito. These fish can remain alive for several days in transport and rough handling. Their resistance is traced to their habit of aestivating in summer while encrust in mud. Packaging in banana stalk is simulating aestivation.

Banana stalk is used in packaging are highly perishable and breakable items, which include many succulent vegetables, ripe fruits, cut flowers, and eggs.

Note the cross-section of banana stalk. It is actually made of a series of chambers that works on the principle of a radiator. That's how efficient its cooling effect is. These chambers trap oxygen and moisture which also explains why sliced banana stalk is a good substitute of ice pack to reduce fever.

The columnar arrangement of the chambers supported by thick outer and inner walls absorb impact of rough handling, and makes the whole structure virtually crush-proof. It is from this that the corrugated cardboard was invented.

Why don't you try packaging with banana stalk farm goods you wish to send to the city? It is a way of  "bridging our folks in the province with those in the in the city."

3. Get rid of dog ticks with crushed atis leaves

Ticks are the most pernicious and tenacious pest of dogs, especially dogs that freely roam around.

Ticks are very resistant. They suck blood throughout their life, engorging themselves many times their own body weight. They may leave a dog virtually a walking skeleton. And they live very long, staying dormant in some dusty corner or crevices at home, sidewalk and thickets, then jump onto a passing potential host and start a new infestation.

Ticks are Arachnids to which spiders and mites belong. They are relatives of insects, crustaceans, and other Arthropods. Arachnids are recognized by having eight pairs of legs and two body segments - cephalothorax and abdomen.

Now this is what you can do to get rid of ticks. I learned this from Mrs. Paz, a regular listener to Paaralang Bayan sa Himpapawid. Crush mature leaves of sweetsop or atis (Anona squamosa) with mortar and pestle and collect the extract. You may add water to increase the volume. You may also make the crushed leaves into a pulp. Rub the extract or pulp on the whole body of the infested dog. . After an hour, bathe the dog with natural soap such as Perla. Repeat treatment after a week. Apply atis leaf extract in the dog house and surroundings. Treat other dogs at home to prevent cross-infestation.

Why not try this safe and simple remedy, instead of using commercial pesticides? Just as Mrs. Paz assured, it's really effective.

4. What to do when an ant has entered into the ear?When an insect, say an ant, has entered your ear, immediately plug the other ear. Tilt your head until it is on a perpendicular level with the affected ear upward. Keep still. The insect, sensing the pressure built up by plugging the other ear, crawls out to the open.

Do not pour oil or use cotton bud. If the technique fails, seek medical help immediately.

4. Fruit laden kapok means poor harvest
When you see plenty of dangling pods of cotton tree or kapok (Ceiba pentandra L), expect poor rice harvest. Kapok is sensitive to water stress. It does not have deep penetrating roots. Instead it has large spreading roots that depend largely on shallow water source.


To compensate for lack of water in summer, the tree stores a lot water in its fleshy trunk and branches like how cactus does while water supply lasts. When the stored water is not sufficient to tide up with the long, hot summer months, a triggering mechanism controlled by hormone stimulates the tree’s physiology. The plant bears flowers and ultimately fruits and seeds, a trait universal to any organism facing stress. This is the key to the perpetuation of the species. In short, Nature has provided a means with which an organism’s ultimate biological function to reproduce is carried on. And the more progeny it produces the more is the chance of the species to continue on.

5. Pristine Environment is indicated by abundance of lichens on trunks and branches of trees, rocks, and soil. There are three types: crustose (crust), foliose (leaf-like) and fruticose (fruiting type). They are biological indicators of clean air. The ultimate test is the abundance of the fruticose type of lichens, while the least is the crustose type. On the side of the animal world, the ultimate indicator of clean air and healthy environment is the abundance of fireflies. ~

Poetry: Return of a Childhood Friend - Balloon Frog

 Return of a Childhood Friend - Balloon Frog

Dr Abe V Rotor 

Balloon Frog - Uperodon globulosus (U. systoma?)

I don't know your true name, and never did care

ever since I was a child; 

you were, as other kids on the farm, called you

tukak bat-og - fat bellied;

our ways parted: I, to school, and you, to where

fantasia had ended;

endangered almost to extinction, I was told;

but down the river bed,

I found you like the Phoenix bird resurrected, 

                                         where I dared not thread. ~

One Monday with Saint Paul

One Monday with Saint Paul

High rise the buildings are - towers and spires, 
proud symbols of power;

In deep silence I heard it seems the same words, 
"Why do you persecute me?" 

Dr Abe V Rotor
Living with Nature School on Blog

Paaralang Bayan sa Himpapawid with Ms Melly C Tenorio

738 DZRB AM Band, 8 to 9 evening class, Monday to Friday

  

                                                                                                St Paul University QC campus

One Monday I visited Saint Paul with inquiries I never asked before;

Fifteen years I served him, a teacher of this school, keeper of a museum;

Time has changed the world, global is its effect, would St Paul tell me

More of the ways of the world to give life a meaning? So did I assume.  

"Tell me where Damascus Road is, where you heard God speak;

Tell me how you crossed the Mediterranean in a storm and survived; 

Tell me how you carried the Word among unbelievers and Pharisees;

Tell me how you faced death yet keep alive your faith and noble pride.

"Tell me where have the Gentiles you converted and followers gone;

Tell me how you wrote the scriptures that gave the bible a wider view;

Tell me how man can become a saint and a saint to become man; 

Tell me how to reach heaven without striving to be a martyr like you."  

The sun rose high, sending reflection of gray clouds on giant glass panes; 

The pavement is bare, the marble floor a mirage, yet empty as the sea;

High rise the buildings are - towers and spires, proud symbols of power;

In deep silence I imagined the same words, "Why do you persecute me?"  ~

Bouquet - Living Calendar of Life

Bouquet - Living Calendar 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. ~

Thoughts of a Toddler Artist - Beyond

Thoughts of a Toddler Artist - Beyond

Dr Abe V Rotor

Living with Nature School on Blog

avrotor.blogspot.com

Markus 2, at work at his grandpa's workshop 2016. 

He may not remember this experience at the dawn of an emerging talent. But in the years to come the young artist will explore the breadth and depth of the world of art.  

• Early impressions create prototype images considered art, 
• Art speaks of a culture, history, era, person - the fields of art criticism, 
• Spontaneity of ideas rolls out from the power of imagination, 
• Coolness and warmth of a piece of art  - only the psyche can "feel."
• Elements of art defying harmony and peace leave lasting impressions.
• Contradictions more than challenge reason, stir the imagination,  
• Soothing quality of art subdues, humbles, bends the knee.
• Rage comes out of the canvas, take it by the horn - in imagination,
• Invitation to some strange places is refuge from harsh reality,
• Schools of art trace the evolution of art that defies Darwinian principles, 
• Man's worth in the arts may yet find a special place in Maslow's hierarchy,
• Art theory is not judged right or wrong, only by social and artistic norms.  ~