Tolkien and I

As I was making a database for my e-books, I came across the works of J.R.R. Tolkien. Then flashbacks of how great his idea of Middle-Earth and its inhabitants run in my mind. I hit the minimize button, clicked for a net browser, and searched for Mr. Tolkien. I checked the top result, and read a few details about him.

He lived for 81 years, from 1892 to 1973. He died one year and a decade before my birth. His name only caught my attention by year 2001, when his work had been woven into a realistic film, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, which marked its spot into history. It took around 6 decades since he began writing LOTR before it was adapted into a film (aside from animation).

Though made vibrant and enchanting with special effects, the whole concept, every fiber of idea, and the entire world of Frodo were penned by J.R.R. Tolkien. The credit was not stripped from the mastermind. The glory was still his. The name was Tolkien.

Now I wonder, will I be remembered 30 years after my death? Will I be able to make something memorable and grand in my lifetime? Will I be able to finish my novels? Much more publish them? Will I make a name in history? Will somebody write a biography about me in the future Wikipedia? I wonder.

Thumbs up to J.R.R. Tolkien.



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Garden and Gold

The most remote inhabited place on earth is the Tristan da Cunha archipelago. Located in the south Atlantic Ocean, it lies around 2,800 kilometers away from the nearest land. The approximately 270 residents share only 8 surnames to date. With only around 80 families, this island is financially self-supporting. This place is visited only once a year by a mail ship, occasionally by a cruise ship, and about 6 times a year by trawlers.

Now, I have this idea of trying to live there with someone I call my partner. Live there like Adam and Eve. Venture the land, feel the breeze, explore the sea in the morning. Lie on the grass, gaze at the stars, sleep by the tree in the evening. Eat what the nature offers you. Wash clothes in the river, bathe in the sea, do extra siestas and live free.

I come to think now that there are many things in my life that I do not entirely need. I just need food, clothes, and shelter like what my elementary teacher taught me. Everything else comes as either entertainment, amenity or luxury. Paying for the land? Payment for a house? A fee for a ride? Protection from who-knows-what and when-comes-what? Paying for meat, fruits, and vegetables? A peso for a chance to reply to a stranger? A subscription for an unseen signal to chat, communicate, and see people across the globe? A big chunk of money to relearn what the past has learned? Another big chunk of money to try learning what the past hasn't yet? How about a pillow when you sleep? A different set of outfit for every occasion? A daily or weekly drama, game show, action, suspense, you-name-it on television? Everything else... just a demand of the society, the civilization, and the government.

I do not discredit the comfort and the pleasure our world and technology give today. Curiosity and advancement are just two of the catalysts to today's people's definition of contentment and fun.

I'd like to try living a different life. A life not demanded nor dictated, not even pre-judged, by the current mindset of world civilization. A life not too tribal yet not too advanced. A life not complicated by the dictate of any ideology. A life of just living and being one with nature. Besides, in the end, we will all be part of nature.



This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Philippines License.