Mission Trip-Kota Marudu, Sabah

The above pictures were taken in 2001 from a mission trip to Nalapak Village, district of Kota Marudu, State of Sabah, Malaysia. Its a small village of only 70 people, all Dusun Tindals (language). Though the villagers are materially poor, their homesteads boast of fantastic natural beauty as the photos surely testify.

Macaque Monkeys

A troop of macaque monkeys live nearby our apartment building. Its a joy to see them at play, as a social unit gathering food and surviving, as part of the ecosystem, and more importantly as a resource in our planet. Not so fun however is when they go into the garbage bins in search of food. This is a timely reminder to homo sapiens to ease up in our polluting ways.

Clidemia Hirta

I am looking for info on the abovementioned plant, also known as clidemia hirta of the melastomataceae family. Common names of the species include Koster's curse ( so named as a result of the invasive nature of the plant), soapbush, and McConnel's curse in Australia. Several articles I've reviewed provided the conclusion the plant has no known uses and is therefore a noxious weed. One writer suggested syrup made from the plant may be able to remove the bitterness of certain teas. It is known the plant contain tannins but perhaps it is not sufficient to be considered toxic. The most positive proposal came from a writer who wrote that it is used in Brazil for skin infections. Studies show that the plant is widespread in many tropical countries around the world. In my area the plant is also too extensive in its spread.

Conference on Climate Change

Flowers! Beautiful one day wilted the next. A lesson to be learnt is this - our world can be beautiful one day, but if we don't take care of it, it will, like the flowers be gone the next. I hope the UN summit on climate change that is taking place right now in Copenhagen will be able to achieve some measures of safeguard for the earth we live in.

Guo Zhiang Lung (tinospora crispa)

Tinospora Crispa is described in both Chinese and Indian medicinal texts. The Malay name is Patawali. A bitter herb its been prescribed for sugar metabolism problems and modern research has confirmed that it improves insulin production in the body. A relative I knew planted the herb to deal with his diabetic condition. The pictures above depict the plant in its natural state.

Help for Diabetics

Festivities can be stressful for the body, especially if it is one of those parties where much food, alcohol, and tobacco are consumed. Diabetics have to be really careful about the food they ingest lest it boost their blood sugar levels to intolerant stage. Scientists are only now discovering a wonder of nature, the setevia plant, which is said to be helpful for diabetics. The plant's leaves are said to be a sugar substitute (300 times sweeter than white sugar) but which does no harm to the body. To verify please check with nutritionists and medical practitioners. By the way the setevia plant originated from South America.

The Real Reason for the Season

Tis the season to be merry. Christmas has become synonymous with presents,

giftwraps, merry making, rich foods (and drinks), Santa Claus etc. Its not all bad except we should never forget the real reason for the season - Jesus Christ. Christmas is the celebration of the birth of the Lord, who was born inside a stable, alongside cows, sheeps, and other farm animals. Christmas is really about God giving Himself to the world that He may reconcile the people to Him. Christmas is primarily about giving and less about the festivities. As we celebrate Christmas we should remember another type of giving - giving up all the foods we should not eat and tobacco. Eat healthy - give yourself a good gift instead.

Planting the Tongkat Ali (eurycoma longifolia)

The tongkat ali tree (translated Ali's walking stick) is a well known aphrodisiac. In recent times many have tried to cash in on the potency of the plant, with products such as tongkat ali coffee, pills, ointments, satchets, and other enhancements. As a result of this great harvest of the wild plant (also known as long jack) there's been a shortage of trees and only now are authorities encouraging replanting of it. The unique tree however takes 5 years to to reach maturity.

Slender in its shape it has a fragile umbrella like leaf canopy (see diagram). It is slow growing, requires lots of soil for its deep penetrating tap root. A mature plant can reach 20 feet in height with its root taking up another 5 feet or so. The leaves are extremely bitter but its the root that imparts a ginseng like effect for the vitality of 'youthful desire' of men.

Edible Wild Fruits and Berries

When we were young kids it often intrigued me the variety of wild berries available in the bush. Would I die after eating them? The horrific idea of dying slowly after eating a poisonous berry too must have crossed the minds of many. Fortunately there is much information out there about the type we can safely eat. The Singapore Rhodendron is foremost when it comes to wild berries in these parts. Another is the dendang (a type of vine from the passionflower species). The latana caramera is another but recently I read a report that its berries are slightly toxic if taken in large quantity. One of the most popular berry of our childhood is the jamaican cherry (muntingia calabura). Its also known as the Japanese Cherry though it is also found in Africa also. Sometimes I pick a handful and eating without any ill effect. The pictures above depict flower, cherry and tree.

Ji Ku Cao (ambrose cantoniensis)

Chinese communities in the Far East have been using Ji Ku Cao (ambrose cantoniensis) for a long time. Brewed as a herbal infusion, it was and is still used to treat liver ailments. I remembered my office mate resorting to it when her husband was warded for herpatitis A (aka jaundice). The pictures shown above depict the herb as found in southern China. A slightly different variety is also grown in tropical countries such as Malaysia but herbalists claim its not as potent as the temperate variety. Can anyone who knows comment?

Appreciating Our Warriors

Uncle Keith Gaughan is an old soldier. At one time he served in British military bases in Singapore in the late 1960s and before that in Camp Paradise, Kota Belud. Thats how he met my aunt. Su Kim. During the 1950s and 1960s Malaya had a communist insurgency problem. Between 1962 and 1966 Indonesia under the leadership of Sukarno initiated a Ganyang (crush) Malaysia policy. All these troubles required armed intervention from UK and Commonwealth forces. Today Malaysia is at peace but we should not forget the contributions of foreigners in the country.

Reunions

A couple of days ago I mentioned several family gatherings. The people gathered are depicted above, and also some of the landscape. The topmost picture is of the islands fronting KK coastline, the second of the Sunday market fair at Gaya Street, the third of my cousins and aunt (emerald blouse with black sweater) from Toronto, and the bottomost picture is that of my parents and my cousin Dr Michel (red shirt) who had just come in from Perth.

Herbs and Health

A recurring theme in this blog will be about herbs and health. "Are you going to Scarborough Fair ... parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme ..." so goes the song by Paul Simon and Art Grafunkel. When we were young and crooning the ballad it never occurred to me I will be a person who will write about herbs or that I will enter into a discussion about the greens.

Still as time goes - especially when age has moved on a bit - the topic comes naturally. My parents taught me some and their parents taught them some. Friends and well intended people also imparted much valuable knowledge. I thank God for His love and grace toward me, giving me the opportunity to learn. All of a sudden I realized my knowledge is sufficient to help some people in some ways. Maybe a herbal formula or two to meet them at a time of their needs.

More importantly I hope readers will write in and give some of their comments. Those who are skilled in the healing arts are also welcome to give tips and pointers. As the saying goes its more blessed to give !! In so doing we all learn from one another and someone gets blessed. Cheers

note-pictures of the herb tinospora crispa (vernacular patawali in Malay or guo zhiang lung in Chinese)

Photos and Family Reunions

This morning I uploaded photographs taken with my handphone (yes its got a camera featured in there) into a VCD. They were taken at 3 family gatherings, including the first one, featuring Danielle - who is the daughter of my cousin David - who flew all the way from Norwich, England for the reunion. Her pic. is on the left hand side. The second batch was that of a gathering in my cousin Kin Fah's house. The third featured a dinner at an outdoor seafood restaurant in Penampang. It featured my cousin Dr Michel, who also hosted the dinner, and aunt. Nyet Yun who returned to Sabah from Toronto, Canada.

Family reunions are such fun. Its so much more enjoyed when photographs are available to preserve the memory of the gathering. In the postings that will follow I will now make it a point to get more photographs into the blog. Some family gatherings are not so fun, such as when someone fell ill, or at funerals, and such. Thats just facts of life but I will try to bring as many cheery moments into the forum. Cheers!

A Wedding

This evening I attended a wedding reception at Port View Restaurant. Earlier in the day the couple had exchanged vows at the KK Basel church and witnessed by a few dozen relatives, friends, and well wishers. As the evening rolled along - the couple - ravishing in their fineries went from table to table as attendants wished to toast to their marriage.

The couple opted to tie the knot which is remarkable given the high number of divorce cases these days. Nonetheless no one mentioned the D word as everyone wished the newly weds well. The wedding banquet included an 8-course dinner, and wine. Toward the end a desert was served. Unlike some of the other weddings I have been to this one is rather tame in nature with only slightly robust yam-sengs and other revelries. God bless you Siew Wan and Wai Lin.

Brook Cherith Blogspot - Why It was Started

The name of this blog was after the brook which the prophet Elijah took shelter in when he was running away from the evil Queen Jezebel. In a similar manner many of our contemporary fellow men and women are running away from the evils of our day - difficult relationships, stressful jobs, traffic jams, high interest rates, ill health, conniving work colleagues, and so on. This blog was written so refugees of the modern world can find shelter in, at least spiritually. I will keep coming back to the blog and refill with interesting stories and anecdotes.

Some time ago I had a website with a similar name but times have changed and I have moved on. In a manner speaking this blog is intended to be an upgrading of the original brook_cherith@geocities.com website, which has since been taken down. In the weeks to follow I will try to transfer the testimonies and anecdotes from that website to this blog.

Cheers