Oida Oasis

It’s summer, a perfect time to go on a vacation. Examples include walking along a beach’s shoreline during sunrise, dinner at sunset on a boat, and sipping cocktails beside a pool. Right now, these are things of the past, until medical professionals develop a vaccine for COVID-19. Because of the pandemic, everything is on hold. Travel plans, partying, dining out, and enjoying nature are not ideal right now. We’re cooped up in our homes, afraid to go somewhere else, and we’re even unable to do the things we used to enjoy.

For the past few months, we’ve been trying to fight this virus. Most of us are doing our best to cope with it while remaining hopeful. If there’s one positive thing that this virus has brought us, it’s the chance to spend more time with our family and loved ones. We were so busy with our jobs and how to make ends meet, that we sometimes neglected how important they were to us.

There’s still a lot of things that we can do to have fun. Sometimes those little moments are more enjoyable and become tomorrow’s precious memories. Since we spent a lot of time at home, my family decided to decorate and improve our backyard. During the lockdown, we planted lots of flowers, herbs, and vegetables. It’s been our goal to incorporate these things into sustainability. We’ve been harvesting some of the plants and used them as ingredients for my cooking.

Our garden is just like a resort—but in our own backyard. Every corner feels like an instant getaway to a tropical destination. My husband built a gazebo and hung the hammock that we bought from the Philippines. We hung some lanterns and lights so that we can enjoy them in the warm summer evenings while roasting marshmallows in the fire pit. Under the hammock, we placed a mat for our siestas after our lunch at noon.

On the other side of the patio, there’s a pergola with a rocking bench, and behind it is another hammock that two people can fit into. At the end of the arbor is a grill (with an umbrella above it) that we use whenever we have barbecues and gatherings. At nighttime, we play board games, eat dinner, listen to music while sipping cocktails, and eat s’mores afterward. We hang out there until late at night just enjoying each other’s company. If we can just be creative, we can recreate the ambiance of our dreamed summer vacation. Despite this uncertainty, I hope that all of you will remain positive so that someday our lifestyle will go back to normal.

The Sway of the Hammock (Ugoy ng Duyan)

Last year, we went to the Philippines to visit our home there. One day, on our way to an excursion on the beach, along the road was a store that had native products like bags, slippers, brooms. Then we saw a hammock. We decided to buy it because it brought me back a lot of memories of my childhood. Back then we didn’t have many luxuries of the modern things that we use today. For example, swings, strollers, and walkers for babies and kids. For me, when I became a toddler, my family already had this hammock, which is called a duyan in Tagalog. My mom or my dad would carry me to the swing and put me to sleep while singing a lullaby. We had that hammock for as long as I could remember. It was also used for my oldest brother and my other younger siblings.

I was inspired to write this blog entry because I remembered the song “Sa Ugoy ng Duyan,” a Filipino lullaby, which means “swaying of the hammock.” The song is about the love and care of a mother to her child. The music was composed by Lucio San Pedro, and the lyrics were written by Levi Celerio. Both of them were national artists of the Philippines.

Last year we hung this hammock in the pergola that my husband made in our backyard patio. It was perfect because the vine that covered the pergola served as a shaded area for the swing. I spent a lot of time relaxing there after a stressful day at work or sipped cocktails under a moonlit sky throughout the whole summer. At some time last year, my sister’s family from Canada visited us. Her kids enjoyed swinging in the hammock while eating s’mores that were toasted at the fire pit and played board games. Because we live miles away, it’s quite rare that we see each other, so we spent more time with them and caught up with each other’s lives.

Since we’re still hesitant to go somewhere because of the stressful events nowadays, our backyard patio is the perfect place to hang out in while enjoying the summer. The hammock is my favorite place to unwind and relax before and after work. I spent a lot of time reading my favorite books there, and it’s quite nice and relaxing.

Mini Rock Garden

Rocks are considered as one of the hardest surfaces. If a person is like a rock, it means that he or she is reliable, trustworthy, and exceptionally stable. It is described in the cliché, “solid as a rock.” We’ve been through a lot since the beginning of the year, but we remained hopeful and resilient throughout the crisis. We know that we will get through this hardship and “it shall pass.” My family and I must be solid as rocks to withstand any storms that will come our way.

I’ve been working in the backyard garden for the past week and I accomplished some of the small projects I planned for the summer. I finished all of the cleanings and decorating in our backyard patio. I planted vegetables, flowers, and herbs, and some of them are ready for harvesting. Most of the days are warm, so we’re out doing barbecue, playing some games, sipping cocktails, and just simply hanging out while enjoying the sunshine.

A few days ago, I posted on my blog with a post called the "Mini Herb Garden.” My mini herb garden is growing more now, and I’ve been pinching some of the leaves to use it for my cooking and making smoothies. It was very rewarding to see my plants grow and thrive, and there’s always something to harvest in my little garden, like strawberries and kale. Because I was inspired by it, I decided to do another project, which was the rock garden. I’m fond of making mini gardens, and I made blogs about them in the past. There are a lot of things that you can use for your garden. They just depend on your imagination and creativity, or you can decide on a theme. That way, it will be easy to gather your materials for your garden.

The other day, I went to Rite Aid, and I found a huge container on sale, so I had this idea of making a rock garden. I collected garden decorations throughout the years, and I just added more that I found on sale from the store. Since my goal is to have mixed flowers and vegetables, I chose cucumbers, cabbages, morning glories, and some other flowers. I even bought a solar rock decoration, which would be the focal point of the garden. We also have small rocks on our patio, and I used some of them to put on top of the container. Then I put metal trellis on the back of it so that vines could grow on it. I didn't have a particular theme for my rock garden, but I suggest using common things that you can find in a garden. Examples are fairies, dwarves, a bird’s nest, and a fountain. Overall, rock gardens are a nice addition to our backyard patio.

Mini Herb Garden

“Herbs are nature’s own medicine and has highly healing compounds. Drinking, eating, smelling, and using herbs in different ways can get you more balanced, de-stress, sleep better, and improve overall health.”

—Law of Positivism

During the Quarantine period, people are finding ways to survive it. Since most places were closed, and we can’t go anywhere, I tried to stay sane by working in my backyard garden. With all the news going on about the pandemic, people dying, and recently, the riots and protests, I got stressed out and started to feel anxious. So, I focused my attention on a small project. I found an old barrel planter laying down in our yard, so I got the idea of making it an herb garden. Buying herbs was kind of expensive, and I didn’t get to use all of them. But planting them in my garden and pinching some of the leaves would be useful for my cooking ingredients. After leaving the herbs alone for a while, they will continue to grow. Then, when winter comes, I suggest drying the leaves or freezing them. They will last until next summer. Overall I mainly use herbs for my cooking, baking, and tea-brewing.

About two weeks ago I went to the gardening store and bought a variety of herbs. I included some vegetables, too, like kale and sweet potatoes to complement them. Also, I gathered some garden decorations that I collected over the years and incorporated them into my garden, as well. Since it was hard to remember all the names of the herbs, I used small labels to identify them.

For soil, I used one that was organic. Then I got a mini trellis and used it as a sign for my small garden. I gathered a lot of small pots and planted the remaining herbs since they all didn’t fit in the barrel planter.

Over the years, we’ve been mostly planting flowers on pots, but I never thought of incorporating vegetables and herbs onto them, too. With the prices of food rising today, I discovered that this is one way to save money and support sustainability. It is actually a great way to start your day looking at your garden and it brings you joy and happiness after seeing your plants grow!

Breast Cancer Awareness

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The purpose of this campaign is to raise awareness about breast cancer and the importance of screening and early detection. During this month, people, especially women, are encouraged to get screened for breast cancer, which improves survival rates if it's diagnosed in an early stage. Also, during the celebration of breast cancer awareness, people are encourage to wear pink, donate, support fundraising, or simply show your love to those people affected by this devastating disease. 

 

 

My younger sister is a breast cancer survivor. During her ordeal, I wasn't there for her in person because of our thousand-mile distance from each other. She's always been a positive person, bubbly and full of life, so she was able to beat the disease and survive. None of us in the family ever had cancer, so I never thought that she would get it. It's very important to get screened every year and do self examination.

In order to honor my sister, I decorated a jean jacket with patches, flowers, ribbons, and buttons, especially designed for breast cancer awareness. I'm sure she will like this; I want to remind her of my ongoing love and support for her. I'm praying that no one will ever be affected by this disease again in our family. I promise to myself that I will do a mammogram every year, and eat healthy, balanced diets.

 

 

A looped pink ribbon symbolizes breast cancer awareness. Today the image of a pink ribbon can be found on shirts, cups, bags, and thousands of other products. If you buy these goods, you're supporting the campaign. But there's more to awareness than just wearing pink; prevention and early detection is the key.