Cyber Information

Similar to the Great Pyramid, we are now visiting the burial place of an ancient king. Yet the Mausoleum is different - so different from the Pyramid that it earned its reputation - and a spot within the list - for other reasons. Geographically, it is closer to the Temple of Artemis… And it was the beauty of the tomb rather than its size that fascinated its visitors for years.

It is located in the city of Bodrum (f.k.a. Halicarnassus) on the Aegean Sea, in south-west Turkey.

When the Persians expanded their ancient kingdom to include Mesopotamia, Northern India, Syria, Egypt, and Asia Minor, the king could not control his vast empire without the help of local governors or rulers — the Satraps. Like many other provinces, the kingdom of Caria in the western part of Asia Minor (Turkey) was so far from the Persian capital that it was practically autonomous. From 377 to 353 BC, king Mausollos of Caria reigned and moved his capital to Halicarnassus. Nothing is exciting about Maussollos life except the construction of his tomb. The project was conceived by his wife and sister Artemisia, and the construction might have started during the king’s lifetime. The Mausoleum was completed around 350 BC, three years after Maussollos death, and one year after Artemisia’s.

For 16 centuries, the Mausoleum remained in good condition until an earthquake caused some damage to the roof and colonnade. In the early fifteenth century, the Knights of St John of Malta invaded the region and built a massive crusader castle. When they decided to fortify it in 1494, they used the stones of the Mausoleum. By 1522, almost every block of the Mausoleum had been disassembled and used for construction.

Today, the massive castle still stands in Bodrum, and the polished stone and marble blocks of the Mausoleum can be spotted within the walls of the structure. Some of the sculptures survived and are today on display at the British Museum in London. These include fragment of statues and many slabs of the frieze showing the battle between the Greeks and the Amazons. At the site of the Mausoleum itself, only the foundation remains of the once magnificent Wonder.

The sting of the present economy of this current world that carries heartache and disappointments in day to day existence offer us heavy thoughts on despondency that God has frosaken us.

In truth and in fact, God has not forsaken us nor will he ever forsaken us.  Once he said: "If a mother who carries the baby in her womb for nine months willl never to forget her child, so do I will nevr forget you. I had purchased you so dearly and paid for you, with a high price of my most precious blood."

Fellow believers in Christ, if the present happenings aew a burden to our life, let us lift up our eyes towards heaven and sigh fot the heavenly rewards that awit those who bear all things in this world patiently and courageously till the end. Afterall God does not ask us, if we have coped the latest nodel in dresses, hairdoes, in latest attire. When we die, God will only ask one thing and that is: "How much we have love God through our fellowmen." This is the foremost and the most. God will never ask for anything else.

So let us not be preoccupied with other matters, so that we will not have those discouraging thoughts that God has forsaken us. God loves us, so muchthat he wil never abandon us.

By: Molen C. Lopecillo

The heart is one of the most important organs in the entire human body. It is really nothing more than a pump, composed of muscle which pumps blood throughout the body, beating approximately 72 times per minute of our lives. The heart pumps the blood, which carries all the vital materials which help our bodies function and removes the waste products that we do not need. For example, the brain requires oxygen and glucose, which, if not received continuously, will cause it to loose consciousness. Muscles need oxygen, glucose and amino acids, as well as the proper ratio of sodium, calcium and potassium salts in order to contract normally. The glands need sufficient supplies of raw materials from which to manufacture the specific secretions. If the heart ever ceases to pump blood the body begins to shut down and after a very short period of time will die.

The heart is essentially a muscle(a little larger than the fist). Like any other muscle in the human body, it contracts and expands. Unlike skeletal muscles, however, the heart works on the "All -or-Nothing Law". That is, each time the heart contracts it does so with all its force. In skeletal muscles, the principle of "gradation" is present. The pumping of the heart is called the Cardiac Cycle, which occurs about 72 times per minute. This means that each cycle lasts about eight-tenths of a second. During this cycle the entire heart actually rests for about four-tenths of a second.

Make-up of the Heart.

The walls of the heart are made up of three layers, while the cavity is divided into four parts. There are two upper chambers, called the right and left atria, and two lower chambers, called the right and left ventricles. The Right Atrium, as it is called, receives blood from the upper and lower body through the superior vena cava and the inferior vena cava, respectively, and from the heart muscle itself through the coronary sinus. The right atrium is the larger of the two atria, having very thin walls. The right atrium opens into the right ventricle through the right atrioventicular valve(tricuspid), which only allows the blood to flow from the atria into the ventricle, but not in the reverse direction. The right ventricle pumps the blood to the lungs to be reoxygenated. The left atrium receives blood from the lungs via the four pulmonary veins. It is smaller than the right atrium, but has thicker walls. The valve between the left atrium and the left ventricle, the left atrioventicular valve(bicuspid), is smaller than the tricuspid. It opens into the left ventricle and again is a one way valve. The left ventricle pumps the blood throughout the body. It is the Aorta, the largest artery in the body, which originates from the left ventricle.

The Heart works as a pump moving blood around in our bodies to nourish every cell. Used blood, that is blood that has already been to the cells and has given up its nutrients to them, is drawn from the body by the right half of the heart, and then sent to the lungs to be reoxygenated. Blood that has been reoxygenated by the lungs is drawn into the left side of the heart and then pumped into the blood stream. It is the atria that draw the blood from the lungs and body, and the ventricles that pump it to the lungs and body. The output of each ventricle per beat is about 70 ml, or about 2 tablespoons. In a trained athlete this amount is about double. With the average heart rate of 72 beats per minute the heart will pump about 5 litres per ventricle, or about 10 litres total per minute. This is called the cardiac output. In a trained athlete the total cardiac output is about 20 litres. If we multiply the normal, non-athlete output by the average age of 70 years, we see that the cardiac output of the average human heart over a life time would be about 1 million litres, or about 250,000 gallons(US)!

Reference: www.google.com

No one ever said tha tlife would be easy. Living in this falling world, we are all subject to the heartaches and disaapointments that accompany any normal existence. Anxiety, worry and care go along with living; it is what we do with them that really counts. This is where we Christians have much hold and advantage. We have Jesus our Savior who helps us to bear our burdens.

We believers in Christ do not have to stage elaborate rituals to escape our worries for brief time. What we have to do is to offer those worries to the Lord and He will sustain us.

By ourselves, we can do nothing. we greatly need our savior’s hand to aid us in this journey towards a blissful eternity. Let us cast our burden to the Lord for surely he shal sustain us. "My yoke is sweet and my burden is light," Jesus once said. Problems cast to him will be borne light and with merits for eternal life.

Jesus my sabior, my refuse and hope, all my cares, my worries nad anxieties will be cast into your feet. In all my problems. I will be the Simeon of Cyrene who had helped you carry the cross while the way to Mt. Calvary. You have taken the heaviest part of them. Lord, remember by myself, i can do nothing, but with you, I can do everything. Lord, into your hands I commend all these things. Amen

By: Molen C. Lopecillo

This National Park covers a land area of 1,884 hectares with 123 islands. However, only 3 islands have been developed for tourists namely : Governor, Quezon and Children’s Islands. From Lucap, one takes a boatride to any of these islands : Governor’s Island,(20 mins.), Children’s Island (25 mins.) or Quezon Island (30 mins.). Boats are privately-operated. Of the 3 islands, the Governor’s Island keeps a Guesthouse which is ideal for family use. It has 2 bedrooms, living room, dining room, comfort room/bath and kitchen. Linens, water (1 drum), light, electric fans, dining and cooking utensils/equipment are provided for. Gen-set provides electric power. The bahay kubos and mini pavilion at Children’s Island are for budget travelers as it consists only of screened bedrooms with fresh water and linens. Kerosene lighting is provided for. Common areas are provided for dining and cooking as well as for toilet and bath. At Lucap Point (Mainland), the main building houses a conference room, restaurant and accommodation facilities. A tower-type building near the Lucap Park houses an office at the ground floor which monitors the flow of tourists to the said islands. Reference:

www.google.com

It would be praiseworthy and noble to reflect on this pointof the Bible taken from the book of the first letter of St. Paul to Timothy chapter 6: 17-19. "Charge the rich to this world not to be proud, and trust in the uncertainty of riches, but in God; Who provides all things in abundance for our enjoyment. Let them do good and be rich i god works, giving readily, sharing with others. And thus providing for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, in order that they may lay hold on to the true life." In these verses, St. Paul admonished especially the few elect (who are rich and abundance of the earthly goods) not to trust in there money, but in God; who provides everything in abundance. he exhorts them to do good to others by way of sharing and freely giving to those who have less. Not to be proud and arrogant to others because they have much money and can afford to pay for a life of a person. God is not please with these! It is absolutely sinful and in human! Let us be reminded of that warning Jesus had given to the rich is recorded in the gospel: "It would be easier for a camel to enter through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter heaven." For us, who have less in life, let us have a contest in growing rich in doing good works, so that the end of our life Christ jesus will give us the reward He had promise to those who fought a good fight for heaven’s sake! By: Molen C. Lopecillo

God never fail us!

Yes, it is true, He never will fail us.

Time and again, we wonder why some of our prayers are left unheard and unanswred. Then we start to conclude thatGod has failed us. He will never fail us. instead, we often fail him.

God knows well what is best for us. it is not up for us to dedicate him what to do and what to give us. But, we are free to tell him all our needs. He said, "Ask and you shall receive . knock and it shall be opened unto you." At other times, in the gospel, Jesus said: "Seek ye first he kingdom of God and all these thing shall be given unto you!" HE said it so again, we seek first his kingdom that is, His will be first sought be followed then in return, He wil give us what we need.

God did not promise to give us al we wanted, but what we need. Therefore if the things we asked him were not granted; we should not lose heart, for the Father knows well what is best for his children. Or, perhaps we dont really need that particular thing.

We must alsi discipline ourselves that prayer is not only for asking. Prayer is primarily for praising, thanking and adoring. Most people pray when they feel there needs. And when they receive the fullness of their needs, they forget to thank God. Remember the Ten lepers! jesus, never failed them, but they failed Jesus.

By: Molen C. Lopecillo

The Chocolate Hills are probably Bohol’s most famous tourist attraction. They look like giant mole hills, or as some say, women’s breasts, and remind us of the hills in a small child’s drawing. Most people who first see pictures of this landscape can hardly believe that these hills are not a man-made artifact. However, this idea is quickly abandoned, as the effort would surely surpass the construction of the pyramids in Egypts. The chocolate hills consist of are no less than 1268 hills (some claim this to be the exact number). They are very uniform in shape and mostly between 30 and 50 metres high. They are covered with grass, which, at the end of the dry season, turns chocolate brown. From this color, the hills derive their name. At other times, the hills are green, and the association may be a bit difficult to make.

Legend has it that the hills came into existance when two giants threw stones and sand at each other in a fight that lasted for days. When they were finally exhausted, they made friends and left the island, but left behind the mess they made. For the more romantically inclined is the tale of Arogo, a young and very strong giant who fell in love with an ordinary mortal girl called Aloya. After she died, the giant Arogo cried bitterly. His tears then turned into hills, as a lasting proof of his grief.

However, up to this day, even geologists have not reached concensus on how they where formed. The most commonly accept theory is that they are the weathered formations of a kind of marine limestone on top of a impermeable layer of clay. If you climb the 214 steps to the top of the observation hill near the complex, you can read this explanation on a bronze plaque.

How to get there

Plenty of tourist guides and tour operators will be happy to bring you to the chocolate hills, either as a separate trip or as part of a day tour. However, if you want to go here on your own, from Tagbilaran, you will have to go the integrated bus terminal in Dao and catch a bus going to Carmen. If you look like a stranger, you will have a hard time not finding one. At the entrance of the bus terminal people will point you to the right bus. Make sure it is the first one to leave, and ask the driver to drop you off at the Chocolate Hills complex, about 4 kilometers before the town of Carmen. From there it is a 10 minute walk along a roud winding up to the complex.

To get back to Tagbilaran, you will have to walk back to the main road, and wait for a bus to pass by. The last bus from Carmen to Tagbilaran leaves at four P.M. Alternatively, you can use the services of the motorcyclists who often wait here for tourist, and ride ‘habal-habal,’ or motorbike taxi.

If you’re coming from Tubigon (arriving from Cebu by boat), a few buses go to Carmen daily, but sometimes you’ll have to wait for some time for the bus to fill up. When you arrive in Carmen, you can catch the next bus or jeepney in the direction of Bilar, Loay or Tagbilaran, or ask a ‘habal-habal’ driver to bring you to the Chocolate Hills Complex.

Where to stay

If you would like to stay in the Chocolate Hills, you have very little choice. The only facility is the Government run Chocolate Hills resort. Currently, this hotel is undergoing renovation and extention, but, since funds have run out, work on this is suspended, and you’ll have to deal with the mess of a half-completed resort. However, the staff are friendly, and if you stay here overnight, seeing the sun rise over this bizarre landscape is worth the inconvenience. The place also has a still functional and mainted swimmingpool, which is behind the unfinished building, a little bit downhill.

Reference: www.google.com

All of us are some what familiar with that episode in the gospel about the ten lepers who were instantly cured by Jess himself, by sending them to the river Siloe to wash themselves,

By the way, how many among them went back to Jesus to thank him? Only one out ten.

Yes, indeed, we have all the reason to thank the Lord, in many times and many ways. From the rising of the sun in the morning dawn to the setting of the sun in the twilight. For a thousand reason to thank the Lord. The air we breath, the sun that gives ,light and energy both evil and good. The people we meet in our day to day existence. The food we eat; that good thoughts and inspiration that come on to light our confused mine; the good book of inspiration aricles we come to read that gives give life and guide our day to day existence. Even tryong situation that nag aoure days life,… All of these, we have the reason to thank the Lord, without ceasing.

The more we thank to the Lord, The more generous he becomes to us. If we wish to receive more grace and favor from him, thankahim without fail every moment fo the day. Even the daily if his answer to our prayers, we still owe him gratitude. Let us make the most of this truth, there’s very little time left to us. Shall we start?

By: Molen C. Lopecillo

If we make holiness our goal, we will attain happiness, if we make happiness our goal, we will search a lifetime and never find it. This is implied Jesus words in the sermon on the mount. He said that the way to blessedness is through the poverty of spirit, purity of heart,  and a longing for righteousness.

Some people think happiness can be achieve by getting rid of retrictions. They reason this way: if rules nad regulations are eliminated, the frustration of having to decide between right and wrong is remove, thereby, avoiding separation in human relationships. Some mortal men says: it is kroe important to enjoy life and to be happy than to do righteous things. Being right and suffering is no fun. When this line of thought is applied to absolute standards  of morality, man is in deep trouble. He denies the reality of sin in his heart as the source of all his woes. He forgets that all lasting joy is rooted in sepration. Separation from evil unto God.

No one who hungers and thirst after righteousness will be disappointed, even thoguh he may encounter pain, misunderstanding, and loneliness. Holiness is the only path to true and enduring happiness.

By: Molen C. Lopecillo