No More Lamentations
Even in Cities
Deep within the most built up metropolises of the world lie hidden, natural treasures. They are everywhere. A small plot set aside for a community garden, roof tops dedicated to vegetable growing or perhaps just a simple line of daffodils flanking a walk leading to a park is most certainly telltale evidence that humans must be connected to nature in some way no matter where they live. With the simple act of growing anything, something much more amazing transpires beyond simply providing a bit of aesthetic beauty. The plant will attract insects of all varieties, the insects will attract small birds, the small birds will attract larger birds of prey and when all is said and done, a micro ecosystem has been established.
Eagle Street Rooftop Farm in New York City
Window Boxes in Florence Italy
What to Do With our Desires
If humans must be near nature as demonstrated by those inhabiting even the most built up parts of our planet, there must be an inner, conscious or in some cases subconscious desire to protect the beauty only the natural world can provide. Despite it all in our quest to be more ‘civilized’, industrialized, or technologically advanced, there are primeval threads that make up the very fabric of our being. Nearly every single soul will stop and observe a bird darting about, a squirrel holding something in its little paws like a human would, fish swimming in a pond, a goose with goslings, a hawk soaring just above head or a butterfly sipping nectar from a flower. If any of these ordinary miracles of life were to disappear, we would miss them. If the plants dried up and the birds and insects died off, a part of us would perish as well.
Male gold finch by IzzyMPhotography
No Room for Assumptions
From the moment we wake to the moment we fall asleep, we take so much for granted. So much… too much. We assume there will be air to breathe, food to eat, water to drink, clean clothes to wear and above all, the natural world seemingly ubiquitous and yet in most cases perceived as simply a backdrop. Perhaps a little something to take the drab away if you will. Should it all disappear tomorrow, what effect would it have on the human soul? Knowing, as established earlier, that we absolutely must be connected with nature? This, again, brings about the conscious or subconscious desire to protect it. What does that involve?
Small Things, then Big Things
I would suppose plastic must be one of the biggest detriments to our natural world due to how incredibly pervasive it has become. It will most certainly survive us and it is EVERYWHERE! And, because it is one of most leading pollutants on the planet thus disrupting the very beauty we already know we are connected to, any attempt at eliminating the use of it would most certainly bode well. A cessation of plastic bags, plastic straws, plastic water bottles is something worth imagining.
Albatross dead after ingesting plastic Photo taken by Chris Jordan
What about water and electricity? Turn off the lights. Use less water. Meat? Yes, cutting down on meat would be quite an advance forward.
No More Lamentations
The time has come now where we can stop feeling depressed, angry or disillusioned at the state of our planet. We all know we need nature. Without it, we may (unlikely but possible) survive but we won’t be the same. If the beauty we know and love disappears, a part of our soul will as well. We can’t have that really. The situation may appear hopeless and perhaps it is but at the end of the day, if we adopt the philosophy of no more lamentations and begin steering our mind toward something different, we may see change. We also may not. We don’t know unless we try.
Imagine a world where every single soul on this planet cared (I have used this word so many times on this blog) about the world we live in. It’s a tall order. Or, maybe it’s not. All in the way you look at it I suppose – just like Schrödinger’s cat.
U.S. Sailors and members of their families help clean up litter at Truman Annex at Naval Air Station Key West, Fla. Author MC2 Brian Morales
I personally imagine this post reaching all 7.5 billion people on this planet. Probably not possible. Then again, maybe it is.
Inspirations for this article:
A Whopping 91% of Plastic Isn’t Recycled
11 Ways You Can Fight Back Against Climate Change Right Now
Image Credits:
From Wikimedia Commons
Albatross Taken by Chris Jordan
Window Boxes Florence Italy: Taken by Fooding Around
U.S. Sailors Cleaning Up Litter Taken by MC2 Brian Morales
Window Boxes Siena Italy Taken by Esteban Chiner from Valencia Spain
Male gold finch by IzzyMPhotography
Rooftop Garden taken from Victory Garden’s edible Feast Season 2
Episode 4: New York City
Eagle Street Rooftop Farm
This is so beautifully written, Ben! You paint a world filled with hope. It is very inspiring. I was recently thinking about the connection human beings have with nature. For me, it’s actually a need. I absolutely need to connect with nature. I suppose this is why we have parks in the middle of cities. I couldn’t imagine NYC without Central Park. Or Denver without City Park. There are things that we all could do to help make things better and your post really captured that.
Hi Janelle. I am SO sorry I missed this comment! Thank you so much for your compliments. I am so happy you enjoy reading my posts. I too need to feel that connection and would actually love to see more land turned into parks as opposed to the dreary destiny of a strip mall. Thank you again Janelle!