MANGKOKOLUM!

S INIMULAN na ang pagwasak sa mga illegal fish pens at fish cages – pawang mga rehas sa tubig—na nakaharang sa bahaging Cavite ng Manila Bay. “Higit na may karapatan sa likas-yaman ng Manila Bay ang mga maliit na mangingisda kaysa mga may-ari ng mga illegal na baklad na pawang nagpapasasa sa salapi at ni hindi mga taga-Cavite,” diin ni Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Lito Atienza nang pamunuan niya ang pagwasak sa mga baklad sa 180,000-ektaryang lawak ng Manila Bay. Saksi si Cavite Gov. Ayong Maliksi at mga 150 mangingisda nang simulan ang pagbuwag nitong Agosto 27. Tinukoy ni Atienza na kabilang ang mga illegal na baklad sa mga pangunahing sanhi sa kabiguan ng pamahalaan upang maisulong ang malawakang pagsisinop sa Manila Bay. Hindi pa rin nakakatupad sa itinakda ng kanilang kontrata ang Maynilad at Manila Water—hindi pa nakakapagpagawa ng sewage treatment facilities kaya nagiging tambakan pa rin ng katas-pozo negro ang Manila Bay. Pahayag ni Atienza: “ This demolition ...

K UNG lumagpas na sa katakam-takam na edad… 69… at ang tumitigas na lang ay mga kasu-kasuan… far over the hill to go scuba diving more or less at a depth luscious and lush between two feet of a dilag, este, sa maalat-alat, umaalon-alon at maginaw na dug-out, whoopsydaisy , dagat nga pala… kailangan nang ibuhos ang loob—dahil nga hindi na makapagbalik-loob ni maibandila sa taglay na tagdan ang pagbabalik-loob sa yungib na pinagmulan—todo-buhos ang loob sa pagtuklas ng kaalaman mula Lumang Tipan! Go bury yourself between the pages … titigilan, huhumpayan na ‘yang mga pakikilala, pakikiliti’t pakikilibing… because there’ll be meatier morsels of canned thoughts in the Scriptures. Seek like a heat-seeking missile does and it’ll be a blast. Malakas ang kutob kong natuklasan ni Lola Berta ang nakalahad na lihim sa Lumang Tipan ukol sa pagpapanumbalik ng sigla ng katawan kahit lagpas na sa edad-69… umabot nga si Lola Berta sa 120 taon, nasilayan pa ang pagsibol ng ilan sa kanyang mga apo sa t...

T HERE was one instance in our Sierra Madre forays when we forgot to bring a pot, we had to cook (1) KANIN or boiled rice in bamboo sections— combine one part rice to one part plus a teaspoon water for soft, fluffy cooked grains—broiled over embers. Water boils quickly at higher elevations due to lesser pressure, kanin sa kawayan done in about 15 minutes. After that, it became convenient for the kids—I have four of them-- not to bring a rice pot in a cookout cum tree planting incursions in the mountains or anywhere in the outdoors where bamboo thrives. These easy-to-cook recipes can be duplicated in any kitchen, less the fun of bonding and actually doing it together as a learning activity. Let’s give you a mountaineer’s sense of (2) HUMMUS : Broil six medium-sized eggplants over live coals until done. Peel out skins. In a bowl, mash eggplant pulp with two cups boiled garbanzos or chickpeas. Season this chunky yet creamy mush with salt, pepper, and minced garlic. Add chopped tips of r...

S WARTHY-LOOKING cuddly ball of fun and sun, 4-year old toddler Clarence Day Tog-aco of Puguis-- a village in the upper rim overlooking Trinidad Valley in the Benguet part of the Cordilleras-- polishes off everything his mom offers him. Boiled chunks of sayote, kamote or gabi; fistfuls of parboiled crisp watercress; sticks of carrots, mustard or radish raw and crunchy; helpings of steamed saluyot tops; a leg of chicken pinikpikan ; a wee tidbit of hearth-smoked pork called inasin ; floret after floret of broccoli, mostly greens that most kids his age would squirm at, push away or refuse to sink their teeth on. His mom confesses to a fondness for such humble fare. She has passed on that food fondness to her son, likely in keeping with the counsel of Israel’s King Solomon, “Teach a child in the way he should go and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” Compared to children in other parts of the country, one among five kids in the mountainous Cordillera region—the highest consum...