6/07/2011

Save The Philippine Seas

Save the Philippine Seas!

The first and only time I did scubadiving, I was tickled pink or should I say, tickled brown to my toes. It happened in El Nido, Palawan.

I was so excited and happy that I could not breathe properly through my breathing apparatus. I even almost forgot to neutralize when I saw the colorful corals swirling like delicate silk curtains in the sea waters. Nemo and his kind was frolicking among the corals and it took me a nanosecond trying to reach out for them. Good thing, my dive instructor who could easily pass up for a movie actor was quick enough to remind me by sign language that it was prohibited to touch them.

Being underwater was a surreal experience, but I would like to do it over again and again. It was only through that experience that I was able to fully appreciate the beauty of the Philippine seas. I grew up near the waters and I saw how it was a huge part of a lot of people like the fishermen and the families. Fish is also part of the main diet of the Filipinos.

For me, the scuba diving experience made me realize that I've come full circle. A circle that I want to experience again and again.

The recent news of seized contrabands of black corals, sea turtles and other marine life had me worried and angered. How could this black souls decimate an entire coral reef twice as big as overpopulated Manila just for the greed? Have they thought about the effects of what they had done? God knows, it might take another generation or maybe more generations before those decimated coral reefs could recover (if they recover at all).

I really hope and pray that the culprits be found and properly executed up to the full extent of the law. I also really hope and pray that the proper authorities in cooperation of the private sector will work hand in hand to resolve this dreadful incident. The culprits did not only destroy the corals and the marine life of our seas but they also destroyed a huge part of our heritage.


In the meantime, let us be vigilant against those people who destory our seas.

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