We found this plant on the side of the trail behind some other shrubbery. The environment had ample shade from the coniferous trees above it. It didn't seem to be interacting much with the rest of the environment, but that is likely because of its eli-parasitical way of obtaining nutrition from the fungi in the soil as I later learned.
Upon first glance, this plant looked to me like a candy version of asparagus. Its flamboyant red and yellow coloring made it stand out from the rest of the forest floor. The flowers look like many little bells hanging from a post. But the most interesting quality of this plant is how it obtains its food. It does not do photosynthesis (hence the lack of green chlorophyll) but rather takes its nutrition from the soil fungi who decompose other materials. This relationship is intriguing because it is a seemingly one sided relationship. Based on what know, Pinedrops do not provide any benefit to the fungi that it mooches nutrients from. This is a departure from the idea of reciprocity we have covered in class through reading about the Three Sisters and other similar relationships. But I do not think that this one sided relationship is necessarily a bad one as suggested by the use of the word “parasite” to describe it. If the organism takes only what it needs to survive without depleting the needs of the fungi, then the system is still fairly sustainable. Maybe humans should take inspiration from this plant and take only what we need from the planet, allowing it to nourish and renew itself.
Mt. Rushmore Prompt
I’ve never liked the idea of Mt. Rushmore. To take a whole mountain, blast it, and carve human faces into its surface seems like the epitome of human hubris and anthropocentrism. In my opinion, the planet already has its own intrinsic value and beauty that cannot be relegated to a canvas—nature is its own artist. No human artist, no matter how skilled, can match the beauty that already exists in natural spaces. These landscapes and ecosystems have been works in progress for millions of years and continues to be an ever changing masterpiece. If I had the option to create my own Mt. Rushmore, I would not take it. Besides, there are so many better ways to commemorate our human heroes instead of immortalizing their images in stone. I think the passage of their stories—their lives, accomplishments, values, and personal philosophies—is a much more effective way to ensure that we can continue to learn from their lives and contributions. This can be achieved through education, literature, oral storytelling, art, and activism inspired by them. Stories are much more likely to touch the hearts and minds of people.
In terms of who I would place on my hypothetical Mt. Rushmore, there are two kinds of figures I would include on my monument: storytellers and activists. They are the writer Ralph Ellison, Filipino novelist and nationalist Jose Rizal, Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta of the United Farm Workers union (I count these two as one person since they worked side by side for the same cause), and the first female president of the Philippines, Corazon Aquino.
Ralph Ellison’s novel Invisible Man is in my opinion one of the most American stories. Born from the Harlem Renaissance, Ellison’s novel of an unnamed young black man finding his way through American society is a story of race, class and identity that reflects the struggles of our modern day America. The faces of this country is becoming increasingly diverse. People from all corners of the world and from all walks of life call America home. Yet society still wants to put in put individuals into neat boxes. This novel resonated with me personally, as someone who has grown up feeling “in between” different cultures and never really fitting perfectly in a certain identity. Ellison’s novel is one that I believes resonates with the struggles Americans must go through to find ourselves.
Jose Rizal is considered the national hero of the Philippines. Not because he fought bravely in a war or was a politician, but rather he used his pen as a weapon against his oppressors. He was a scholar in every sense of the world. A doctor, traveler (he visited the US several times), writer, and activist, he used his knowledge and talents to write Noli Me Tangere, a novel depicting the realities of life for Filipinos during Spanish Occupation. He unashamedly wrote of the injustices and corruption of the Spanish officials and missionaries in the Philippines as part of the Filipino Propaganda Movement for political reform. Because of his writing, the colonial government executed him by firing squad. But his novel and dedication to his cause inspired a Philippine Revolution. His unwavering dedication to his beliefs and countrymen is inspiration for all to continue to fight against injustice.
Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta were Latin American leaders within the labor movement in the mid 20th century. Together they formed the United Farm Workers union (UFW) to give immigrant agricultural workers a voice in an unjust system. They lead Latin American farm workers in the fight for their rights through strikes like the Delano Grape Strike. They also did all of this following the tenets of nonviolent protest and civil disobedience. Their struggle to give disenfranchised people a voice by taking on exploitative industries head on is one modern activists can learn from, especially since many of the issues they fought still continue today.
Lastly, the fourth person I would put on my personal Mt. Rushmore is the 11th president of the Philippines, Corazon Aquino. From 1965-1986, the Philippines was under the dictatorial rule of Ferdinand Marcos. Under the martial law of this time, there was no freedom of speech nor individual liberties. There were activists, like Aquino’s husband Benigno, or Ninoy. After her husband’s failed presidential run in 1978 against Marcos, they were exiled to the United States. Upon her husband’s assassination at the Manila International Airport (now Ninoy Aquino International Airport), she returned to the country as the leader against the Marcos regime. She lead the People Power Revolution of 1986, a nonviolent protest where hundreds of thousands of people flooded Manila and staring down and putting flowers down the gun barrels of Marcos’s military. This protest forced a reelection where she won the presidency. As one of my personal heroes, Corazon Aquino is the woman who spearheaded the return of democracy to my nation. I feel she is more than worthy of being commemorated on my “Mt. Rushmore.”
Journal entry by Gabrielle Dizon
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