Finding Comfort in the Woods: A Refreshing Walk at the School's Biodiversity Site

Hello dear friends and fellow Hivers! It's my first time posting here in this beautiful community and I hope everyone is well and healthy.

On this occasion, I'd like to share with everyone how my ordinary Wednesday became meaningful and great trying to keep up with my health goals this 2023- and that is to spend even a few minutes going hiking or walking.

It was thirty minutes past five in the morning and Mister Sun still continued to hide which meant the clouds dominated the sky. It was already January and it had been like this for many weeks but this cool morning didn't stop me as I took a refreshing walk with my best buddies, my sister, and our pet dog, Blackie, at the calming and relaxing place just at the back of the school where I'm currently teaching- the Kal-anan National High School's (KNHS) Biodiversity Site.

_{These photos were taken using my Vivo1919 phone.}

The moment I stepped into the entrance of the Biodiversity site, I could already feel the relaxing atmosphere around me as the tall and mighty forest trees stood proudly by the trail. Walking further, the cool morning became much cooler and refreshing as I seemed to hear the magical whispers of the old trees that signaled to each other that a stranger was coming! Of course, it's not my first time coming up here because we, the teachers and students, used to take our turns revitalizing this place by cleaning and planting seedlings during Tree Planting Activities before the COVID-19 pandemic but for about two years, it had been left unmonitored and unattended to because in-person classes were suspended by then.

It's been a while since I came back to this place again and it never failed to give me comfort and mesmerize my inner being. The sight of the plants, especially the trees, the sound of the birds singing and chirping, and the fresh smell of the air brought me into a temporary lull and made me forget the stress and pressures of life.

_{Young, mature, and mother trees such as molave (vitex parviflora- Source: en.wiktionary.org), Talisay (Tropical Almond Tree- Source: thephilippinestoday.com and other locally-named fruit and forest trees grow side by side at the foot, at the hillside and at the top of the hill developed to become a Biodiversity site.}

Following the trail, we were able to reach the top of the hill but the magnificent view didn't seem to have been bothered by the cloudy sky at all. Of course, I had to capture this sight wilfully!

Going down again through the pathway to the back portion of the biodiversity site, the different species of plants and trees urged me to take a quick breathing exercise enjoying the free gift that God had given us every day and we sometimes forgot to appreciate- it's the fresh air that we take in to live and survive!

_{These photos above were taken using my Vivo1919 phone.}

To give you further an idea about what biodiversity is, here's a short description:

What is Biodiversity and Why is it Important?

'Biodiversity’ comes from two words: ‘biological’, which means relating to biology or living organisms, and ‘diversity’, meaning a range of different things or variety. Biodiversity is the variety of all living things: the different plants, animals, and microorganisms, the different genetic information they contain, and the varied ecosystems they form.

Biodiversity is fundamentally important. It is considered by many to have intrinsic value: each species has a value and a right to exist, whether or not it is known to have value to humans. More information can be read here: Source:bct.nsw.gov.au

The Start of the Biodiversity Reserve Development Project

History in the Making

With the parcel of land wilfully allowed by the Lobitana family, the landowner, to be used as the Biodiversity site, the Soil and Water Conservation Foundation, Inc. (SWCF) being the implementing agency partnered by the provincial government and the Department of Education, the Biodiversity Reserve Development Project in Kal-anan National High School (KNHS) came into being.

The Launching of the Biodiversity Reserve Development Project

The accomplishment and success of this Biodiversity Reserve Project was thru the combined efforts of the school personnel, students, parents, and local officials who showed their unwavering support to the program with the guidance and assistance of the Soil and Water Conservation Foundation, Inc. (SWCF) and the provincial government. It was on October 10, 2010, that this project was launched after the orientation conducted on September 21, 2010.

_{The launching activity was attended by the SWCF director, Mr. William Granert and his other half, the local officials, the Parents Teachers Association (PTA) officials, the school administrators, teachers, and students.(The photos above were grabbed from the photo collection of the School Biodiversity Coordinator).}

Hole Digging and Trail Preparation

_{Disclaimer: I do not own the photos below but these were grabbed from my co-teacher's photo collection.}

_{The parents and local officials worked hand in hand in the digging of holes for the seedlings to be planted as well as in the designing and making of the trail around the Biodiversity site.}

Site Preparation

_{The students, together with their teachers and school head, also got themselves involved in the clearing of the area and in the measuring the proper distances of the trees from one another in order to prepare the site for the tree planting activity.}
Seedling Preparation

Tree Planting Activity

_{The local officials showed their support to the project and led the tree planting activity.}

_{All the students participated also in the tree planting activity bringing with them their bamboo-made tree guards to protect their seedlings planted from stray animals or even humans.}

After the overwhelming cooperation and strong partnership of the people involved, the KNHS Biodiversity Reserve Project turned out successful and photos below show this remarkable accomplishment.

The Trail

_{This colorfully painted design warmly greeted and welcomed the visitors as they entered the Biodiversity Area.}

_{The trail at the foot of the hill.}

_{Going up to the skirt of the mountain.}

The Biodiversity Project Through the Years

For many years, the biodiversity site had been well-maintained and taken care of by the students and teachers, however, the pandemic hindered us to keep up with this noble cause.

Nevertheless, the used-to-be just an ordinary hill where only a few wild trees grew became the new permanent habitat and dwelling of not only of different species of plants and trees but also of many birds and other animals.

As reported by the School Biodiversity Coordinator, at present a total of 370 fruit and forest trees survived in the area out of the 385 seedlings planted and this number of tree survivors gave not only a cooling effect and enough oxygen that the locals near the area needed but also stabilized and held the soil in order not to be washed away by wind and water.

Indeed, when we care for nature, nature will likewise take care of us in return!

This is all for today's blog. I hope you enjoy my article once again and show your support, too!

Thank you very much and my good wishes to one and all!