The heart of the Andes

 There is painting of the American artist Frederic Edwin Church, titled 'The Heart of the Andes' that I had set as my laptop desktop background image for a couple of years now. 

Initially I thought the painting was 'The Church in the Andes'... I had mixed up the name of the artist and the art piece itself. Today while reading something more about the same painting I learnt that it was a tribute to the philosopher naturalist Alexander von Humboldt. So basically it is a piece of art depicting nature. The title given to the painting also is this justified - nature being the most prestigious element of South America. 

Nonetheless, I found asking myself, what is the cross doing in that painting? More specifically, what is the cross doing in the HEART of the Andes? One could brush aside this question attributing the cross in the painting to the artist's colonial and Catholic affiliation. Perhaps there is an element of truth there. But why is it there at all? That too in that size. The cross isn't central. Neither large nor immediately evident. It is part of the whole natural landscape. But it is there!

I interpret it as God being part of one's heart. Not overriding or displacing everything else, but an integral element. Greater still is the artist's depiction of the people in the painting: near the cross. Not bathing, not working in the field, not elsewhere. 

In a way the painting is, for me, a microcosmic depiction of the human being: the human as one tiny part of nature and reality; and at the same time a macrocosmic aspect: God at the heart of all reality.

Feat of survival

The other day I had to pick up someone from the airport, and as usual and expected there was a delay in the arrival. So I was well prepared as I had taken my writing pad and did my work while waiting, outside the airport, under the national highway flyover.  

While jotting my plans and thoughts, I saw this particular plant growing on the wall of the flyover. All healthy and flowering too.  Easily high up on the wall, atleast 15 ft up and with no source of water, other than rain!! 

I guess this is what survival is all about.  While we take such great and delicate care of some plants that we try to cultivate in our garden, but never manage to keep them alive or fresh for long, here's a plant, out in the wild, on its own and against all odds, not just surviving but thriving! 

Construction and comfort

With new constructions and renovations being planned and executed in very many communities, most confreres prefer to now go for AC-utilisation mode – all in the name of modernisation and better living conditions. This means reduced ventilation spaces and special painting and low-ceiling and tiled floors... However, what I have a difficulty is the inability of our guys foreseeing the additional expenses and inconveniences these modifications incur. Besides laying separate wiring, sockets, and the cost of the AC unit itself, there are the hidden but certain costs of higher electricity bills, extra load on the total consumption, even to the extent of leading to the necessity of having an independent transformer. Add to that the uncertainty of continued power supply in most of our locations. So we’ll sooner or later need to buy generators – that too, those which can support the load of these AC units. 

The greatest disadvantage in planning of exclusively AC rooms is that when the AC is inoperational, the room is as good as an oven, given our hot climate. The greatest risk of enhancing the comforts in our rooms and offices, is that we eventually get stuck to these rather than our active apostolate AMIDST the young. Between the dirty streets or the scorching playground or the sweaty hall and the air-conditioned office or room, the temptation to seek refuge in the latter is too overwhelming. 

I’d rather prefer that we plan and construct rooms, halls or buildings which have the maximum arial ventilation and light. Even those limited and selected rooms where we wish to use AC units, there should be a reasonable option for natural ventilation and/or fans.

 

An eternal work-in-progress

During my last visit home, looking around the garden, it struck me that it was 'work-in-progress'.  That was nothing different or surprising, but what hit me hard was the realisation that it always - ever since my childhood - has been so!!  An eternal 'work-in-progress'.  The whole of it; all the time!

All my time at Chertsey, I took care of the garden of the house. Looking back even that garden was a w-i-p!  No sooner that I left, Godwill took it up and John sent me some photos of the transformed garden - it was so beautiful. Perfect. No more w-i-p!!  

I think there is some strange tendency among us - should I say, Indians or particularly gardeners - to never ever achieve completion.  Looking further back, at our gardens and farms in Mangalore or in the Province, nowhere are they complete.  They are always 'under construction'.  All of it. Not just some part of it, but all of it, all the time!  

I think it is basically an art or style of functioning.  We always have work to do!! There is always something that needs to be done.  And it can never ever be completed!  

The interconnectedness

The secret language of trees... 

There is nothing wrong with having a tree as a friend.  Ross Bob

Trees have a vast root system that supports not only survival of itself but facilitates a highly complex and intricate communication system between the various trees in the vicinity.  It is not just the trees roots that do all the work, but there is a whole invisible army of fungi, algae, microbes, sugars... that is at work.  Not all of this network and their mutual functioning and aiding is clear or understood by human science.  But the fact remains that there is a whole give-and-take going on underground.  Most of it is mutually benefiting, but not necessarily all of it.  

What's most interesting is that there is information too passed on!!  This sharing of information helps neighbours get ready to cope with factors (drought, insect attack, diseases...) not yet encountered by itself but by another in its vicinity. 

The bottom line of it all is the interconnectedness of nature!!  

Our relationship with nature

A good short video summing up my lesson for my students about our relationship with the earth! 

Spidey growth

My spider plant has done well over the year.  Given that it survived a month, in my absence - and others not noticing it drying up right at the entrance!

That was in October 2019

As of today (10 May 2020)

It was in May last year that I pinched a small twig of this from Farnborough house during my annual retreat there. It has been a joy to see it grow. 

God, nature and me

When it comes to living our faith and understanding spirituality, we can very easily be viewing it from a two-dimensional perspective: God and me.  While in a sense, this is true, it is not complete.  Our deep rooted Christian faith, our personal spirituality, can never be complete without the third dimension of the rest of creation - nature.  Perhaps, even to say that the often forgotten third dimension of 'the other' is people, is incomplete.  It is not just people that make up the rest of everything; there is the environment, nature, that actually makes up the 'rest of everything'.  In short, there is God, nature and me.  That's the complete inclusive reality. 

Faith is not just to see Jesus, it is to see with the eyes of Jesus.  (Pope Francis, Lumen Fidei 18)

So, there is Jesus, myself and that what I'm invited to see with Jesus' eyes.   

Nothing called 'waste' or 'away'

Yesterday at Egham Hythe for the blood donation session, I carried with me the plastic cup I had picked up during the previous session, four months ago.  The plastic cup has been on my side table, used now and then for drinking water - when I decide to kill time leisurely!

When I arrived at the session to inform of my arrival, the young man there checked my form and then asked me to take a seat and have a drink.  And when he saw the plastic cup in my hand, he said, "Oh, I see you already picked up a drink." And I told him, "That's from the previous session! I didn't throw it away."  At first, he looked a bit puzzled, but when he understood, he beamed broadly and said, "Great!"

I still have the cup with me.  I think it's going to stay and be used for a while!  

No twitter

Strange: No twitter of birds this morning. I did not hear any birds twitter this morning.  Strained hard to hear any during meditation, but heard none!  Must have taken off for the bank holiday today! 

The past couple of days have tried to focus my attention on the lovely chirping of birds during meditation.  Found that very calming and melodious too.  A sort of serenity that gently envelopes you without feeling the weight of anything.  Any description of it only adds insult to it!  

Philosophizing as...

The other day while listening to a paper on Schelling, and his efforts at recognizing and addressing the alienation of humankind from nature, it was interesting to hear a particular nuanced approach that lies at the heart of the issue.  Schelling says that in order to restore the lost connection, one has to become a philosopher of nature.  And how does one become one? 

Among the other ways and descriptions of what and who a nature philosopher is, the author was stating that it is not so much about a person doing 'philosophy of nature' rather it is philosophizing as nature.  In the former instance, of doing 'philosophy of nature' or 'philosophizing about nature', the person is still maintaining a separation between nature and oneself.  There is already a disunity, right at the outset of one's effort at rectifying the brokenness.  The latter perspective, of 'philosophizing as nature' is whereby one realizes oneself as part of nature, not separate or disunited from.  Humankind is part of nature.  In so far as this is true, it is nature philosophizing nature!

This perfectly sums up what Taylor is trying to say about language.  We have no vantage point outside of it, so as to speak about it.  If we do so, we are already alienating ourselves from our own reality.  Language is to be understood from the inside, not from the outside - unless one is merely doing philosophy of language. 

Tough policy - tough action

Know not how actual is the implementation of this news story in Tanzania. But even if half of this is true and effective then, hats off to the person(s) making the news. 

There is a plastic ban in Tanzania.  Anyone found with a plastic bag will be fined $ 87 or face upto seven days in jail.  Those caught manufacturing or importing plastic bags will be fined $ 430,000. (Really??) But what I liked about this ban and the subsequent penalty for going against it is the first hand example by the President John Magufuli.  He has been at the forefront of this ban and was recently shown buying fish using a wicker basket rather than a plastic bag!  It may all be for the cameras.  Nonetheless, am surprised and happy that there is such a ban in place and people at least making a serious effort to reduce production and use of plastic bags. More than 30 African countries have banned single use plastic.  That's something amazing.  Wonder how many European countries have such a ban in place?  

Pavement flowers

Last year I carefully gathered the seeds of violas and pansies and planted them this year.  Not one has sprouted, yet.  On the other hand, I'm coming across these same plants peeking out in all odd places: in the centre of the lawn, under the garden gate, even one right in front of the main door growing between the tiny space between two paving slabs! 

Fancy food

With all the craze about specialized diets, one often wonders how on earth did we survive before?  While I am aware that some allergies are life-threatening, I am also aware that these allergies existed even before, what makes them lethal today is that in the process of adapting to the environment, we have lost quite a few immunities we would have had in the past. The earliest one I remember is 'dust allergy'.  When I first heard someone use this as a reason to get a different place assigned for work, other than the library, I laughed!  Today there are multiple examples: gluten free, vegan, diet drinks, sugar-free, ... what not!  Most often these are fancy fads. 

The human body is an amazing piece of work.  It can adapt itself to great variations - perhaps not as varied as some animals, but it does have enormous capacity.  Only if we let it develop can we enjoy diverse conditions of climate, food, drinks, circumstances... But if we pamper it and shield it too much, it will not develop the necessary immunity to fight and at the first slight variation, succumb to illness.  

Building nests!

I wanted to attend the departmental interview rounds for one post of full-time professorship at the university today.  As PhD students we were invited to be present.  However, was stuck in traffic and didn't reach in time.  So I was waiting outside the room, just in case someone else comes out and I could sneak in.  Then I decided to sit in the PhD room exactly opposite to the room where the interviews were being conducted.  As I opened the room, I saw a pigeon inside and then noticed one of the windows slightly open.  I chased the pigeon out but by then realized that it had been in for some days.  Just as I was hoping that it had not built its nest, I saw it under the table - not exactly a full-fledged nest but some twigs and leaves.  What's more, found two eggs in it! 

My desire to join in the interview presentations and questions flew out of the window, just as the pigeon!  I then searched and found a small lid, big enough for the pigeon to sit in, and then tried to re-arrange the twigs; placed the eggs in it and put the whole thing on the window sill outside.  But then had doubts if the eggs would roll down and crash on the pavement below.  Moreover the sun was beating hard and directly on the eggs - not a good thing!  So then, searched for a cardboard box, placed the whole thing inside the box.  But then it occurred to me that someone might accidentally grab the box in - and thereby disturb the 'ongoing construction of the nest' and break the eggs.  So put a small note on it.

Too much!

Three of the news items hitting the BBC top news list of today and what a contrast! 

There is the severe floods in Kerala and the destruction it has brought about.  Then there is the devastating drought in Australia.  Two places suffering from two extremes of weather and climate.  If only the rains were to fall in Australia and the sun shine down bright and hard on Kerala...!!  

The third news item is in stark contrast to the other two nonetheless shows what happens when we have plenty!  The news is about how one third of the vegetable and fruit produce never make it to the supermarkets in Europe, all because they are not the perfect shape and size or not good looking.  Consumers won't pick up those and supermarkets don't want to take in these fruits and vegetables from the farmers.  So what is the fate of these 'misshapen' produce? Thrown away as waste!

The most disgraceful aspect of the news itself was the use of words such as "ugly", "misshapen", "wonky", "blemished", "wrong size" to describe how the fruits and vegetables look!  Really?  I wonder if the floods of Kerala and the drought of Australia were to happen here, would people still go by the looks of the produce? 

Holy wells and rags

Chatting with Fr Sean after Mass this morning, I heard for the first time the tradition of tying pieces of cloth or thread around trees and bushes in the Catholic tradition.  I've heard and seen it being practiced very much among the Hindus in India. However, never knew that even among Catholics there is a similar tradition - and perhaps for the same purpose.  People tie pieces of thread or colourful cloth pieces around tree branches or bushes as a sort of intention, either for oneself or for someone else.  Fr Sean said that this was a popular practice of piety when he was a boy in Ireland, especially on a feast day like today, the Assumption.  People would go in procession or just visit the holy wells, recite the rosary have a sort of prayer service and carry out this ritual before returning home.  It is said that the wells reminded the Christians of the pool of Siloam and the rags tied to the trees as prayers for some healing.  However, this tradition could be dating back to the Romans, before Christianity.

Well, that's new information! Lovely to hear of this affinity between worship and nature in the Christian tradition.   Did some search on the net and read something more about this great connection here!  Most surprised to hear for the first time of this tradition of tying rags to trees in the Catholic tradition.  

Fragrance of the first rain

Like many, I too love the fragrance of the first rain.  We had some good showers yesterday, exactly after two months - very unusual in the UK.  And the first thing that caught my attention even before I could see the rain was the fragrance of that rain hitting the ground.

Only today did I read something scientific about it - petrichor, that's the name of the fragrance! It is actually caused by a bacteria when the rain hits the earth.  Since I cannot describe (sufficiently) the experience of the fragrance, I might for now learn the scientific chemistry behind it.  The term 'petrichor' was coined by scientists Isabel Joy Bear and Richard Thomas in their 1964 article "Nature of Argillaceous Odour", published in the journal Nature. The word was coined from Greek petros, meaning 'stone', and ichor, meaning 'the fluid that flows in the veins of the gods' More of it here on BBC. 

The Kingdom of God

Both the first and the third reading of the day have plants and growth as their central theme.  It is all about seeds and plants and a detailed description of life/growth. 

One thing for sure about seeds and growth: they take their time to grow.  There is no rushing.  When the time is right, the seeds will sprout and it will take its own time to grow.  There is nothing called instant growth.  One can at the most speed up the growth by supplying the plant with all the required nutrients and water.  But even then there is nothing called, 'instant growth', like 'instant coffee' or fast food!

Secondly all of this growth is invisible to the naked eye.  Right since the germination, which usually takes place beneath the ground till the very end of the plant, it is slow and invisible process... nonetheless real and apparent. 

Two typical characteristics of the Kingdom of God: slow and invisible but sure and full of life!  

Pink flowers

This pink blossom has similar characteristics with most British plants/trees... though I'm not sure if this plant is a native species.  However, in spring when the plants and trees come back to life, they first put out flowers, only later do leaves follow!!  So too does this skinny plant with its pink flowers.