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Cloudy Inspirations

Mackerel Sky (cirrocumulus clouds) I wandered lonely as a cloud That floats on high o’er vales and hills When all at once I saw a crowd, A host of golden daffodils. Excerpt from Daffodils by William Wordsworth Lenticular cloud  I am the daughter of Earth and Water And the nursling of the sky; I pass through the pores of the ocean and shores; I change, but I can not die. For after the rain when with never a stain.  The pavilion of heaven is bare, And the winds and sunbeams with their convex gleams Build up the blue dome of air. Excerpt from The Cloud by Percy Bysshe Shelley “Clouds come floating into my life,  No longer to carry rain or  usher storm But to add color to my sunset sky.” Ravindranath Tagore “I think I will be able to, in the end, rise above the clouds and climb the stairs to heaven, and I will look down on my beautiful life.”  Yayoi Kusama “I owned the world that hour as I rode over it. Free of the earth. Free of the mountains. Free of the clouds, but how inseparably I

2020 Takeaways

The Year Time Stood Still The year is almost gone And what have I done? Did I waste the time away And left things in disarray? Because I chose to play. There’s just days to go Better write a list to do Before we say adieu And remember to thank Godot For the bad and the beau. TravelswithCharie I had so many planned travels in 2020. In fact my suitcase was packed for a trip to the Philippines the last week of January. My cottage there was partially destroyed by a typhoon and I had repairs to see to. But the suitcase with presents for friends and family never took flight. Covid-19 ruled our lives.  Among the things I had packed were boxes of chocolates I had bought to give as gifts. I ended up eating all of them rather than have them expire. Reading, meditating while basking in the sun, and learning to prepare new dishes became my support system as were calls from relatives and friends and the “care” packages my sister sent to me.  My cousin introduced me to Instacart so I didn’t have to

It is the birthday of thy King

Awake, glad heart! Get up and sing! It is the birthday of thy King! Awake, awake! The sun doth shake Light from his locks and all the way Breathing perfumes, doth spice the day. Excerpt from Christ’s Nativity by Henry Vaughan  ****** Image by TravelswithCharie

Conversation with Lilia Hernandez Chung, Ph.D.

Lilia Hernandez Chung, Ph.D. graduated with a degree in Philosophy and Letters  from the University of Santo Tomas where she taught for four years after graduation. In 1958, she won a Fullbright scholarship and received a fellowship for graduate studies from Syracuse University in New York where she earned her doctorate degree in the Humanities. She met her husband, Kai Lai Chung, at said university where he was a Professor of Mathematics. They later moved to Stanford, California where she taught Ethnic Studies at Foothill College for 24 years and also served as one of its directors of Multicultural Affairs. Dr. Chung received the Women of Achievement Award from the League of Friends of Santa Clara County Commission on the Status of Women in 1980. She has three children and four grandchildren. She divides her time between the Philippines and California. Aside from being an educator, Dr. Chung is a published author. Her publications include Peninsular Prose Fiction of the Philippines, J

Pumpkin Season

Pumpkins come in all shapes, sizes and colors!  Pumpkin, pumpkin  Sitting on a wall Pumpkin, pumpkin Tip and fall. Double, double toil and trouble Fire burn and caldron bubble Fillet of a fenny snake In the caldron boil and bake Eye of newt and toe of frog Wool of bat and tongue of dog Adder’s fork and blind-worm’s sting Lizard’s leg and howlet’s wing For a charm of powerful trouble Like a hell-broth boil and bubble. Double, double toil and trouble Fire burn and caldron bubble Cool it with a baboon’s blood Then the charm is firm and good. William Shakespeare, Macbeth I only have pies for you, warts included. “There are three things I’ve learned never to discuss with people: religion, politics, and the Great Pumpkin .” It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown ***** Images by TravelswithCharie

I grew up by the sea

Haystack Rock, Cannon Beach, Oregon It’s been a year since my last trip to the beach. It felt so good to feel the sand at my feet, listen to the roar of the surf and the cry of seagulls and see the expanse of blue sky caress the ocean. White sand stretches all the way to Seaside where we stopped for lunch at a seafood restaurant. Ripples of sand flutter along the shore at the slightest breathe of summer wind.  I grew up by the sea It’s always with me No matter where I go I hear its warm hello. It’s been too long Since I’ve heard her song  Feeling her today Nevermore shall I stray. Charie Albar ***** Images by TravelswithCharie  

Conversation with Aldrean Paul Alogon

Aldrean Paul Alogon graduated with High Honors from Philippine Science High School (PSHS), Western Visayas Campus in 2019. He also received the Excellence Award in Physics. While in high school, he represented the Philippines at the International Olympiad for Astronomy and Astrophysics in India and Thailand. Mr. Alogon won the Freeman Asian Scholarship, a full scholarship for a four-year course of study leading to a bachelor’s degree. He is now enrolled at Wesleyan University in Connecticut, USA. Wesleyan is one of the country’s premier liberal arts institutions. As a child growing up in Sigma, what were your dreams for your future? I grew up wanting to be either a doctor, a lawyer, or a scientist. To tell you the truth, the first two were somehow planted in my head by the people around me, maybe because I had “above” average grades and that those professions are the most profitable if you have the capacity to ace them.     When did you begin to take an interest in science? As a child,