Sometimes the truth of life is perfectly expressed in cartoons.
I have been reminded of this famous "Pogo" cartoon lately due to the amount of garbage that I have seen on our local nature trails. (Pogo is meant to be a possum who lives in the Okeefeenokee Swamp which is in Georgia. The cartoonist is Walt Kelly.)
You would think that the exquisitely beautiful Arabia Mountain would garner enough respect that those who climb to the top would be satisfied with the natural beauty of it...but no, we have seen evidence of fires being built in the pits (which CAN support rare plants given the chance) and bits of burnt out firework papers. Frankly, this disgusts me. It is believed that Arabia Mountain is ...wait for it...400 MILLION years old. Let's see, what would man do if presented with something so rare and unique as to defy description? Yes, let's build a fire on it and roast MARSHMALLOWS!
Still...there is hope! Recently, I went on a nature hike with a small group of adults and four children. I must tell you...the children were wonderful. They were respectful of the solution pits on the mountain and gingerly stepped around them. The joy that they experienced when they discovered tadpoles in the pools on top of the mountain was delightful! And when they found a fish that was trapped in one of the tiny pools near the edge of the lake, they were thrilled when they rescued it and returned it to Arabia Lake!
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Kids finding fish in small pool at edge of Arabia Lake/they rescued it! |
The guided hike was on one of the rainy, cool days in April and I am showing you these photos so that you can see that Arabia Mountain is lovely in every weather and in every season. Let's keep America beautiful, people!
My favorite expression is "Leave no footprints".
ReplyDeleteThis is especially important on the sandy parts on Arabia Mountain, where rare and beautiful plants live if given the chance.
DeleteThe way we live today, we can't avoid leaving traces of our presence, and we can not turn back time. But we can at least avoid those traces that are so unnecessary, ugly, harmful and really easy to avoid - by simply not leaving them in the first place!
ReplyDeleteI have never understood why people drop their rubbish whereever they walk and stand. Chocolate wrappers, beer cans, whatever. Our parents raised us in a different way. They also taught us not to be noisy when in nature, so as not to disturb animals (and other people). Noise pollution is something else that is much under-estimated, causing a lot of stress.
You are so right about this fantastic place being beautiful in any weather, any season!
I can show you lots of photos from here of tons of rubbish on the side of the roads and that is bad enough but to have people leave their garbage on Arabia Mountain is ...well, sinful is not too strong a word for it, in my opinion.
DeleteNOISE pollution! Oh my friend, you have no idea how much I enjoy peace and quiet! How often have we been on nature trails and we are listening to a bird song that we have never heard before, and then...here comes someone talking AT THE TOP OF THEIR LUNGS! No more birdsong after that! That is one reason that the church at the Monastery is such a blessing to us, the peace and quiet within those thick concrete walls is heavenly.
I am glad that you "see" Arabia Mountain like we do! Not everyone does.
It is a shame to hear that not everyone takes the care they should, but good to know that there are many that do care and do the right thing!! xx
ReplyDeleteYou would have love those kids, they were so wonderfully curious and respectful. I love kids, don't you? Not everyone does, you know, but I am sure that you are a lot like me! xx
DeleteIt is a beautiful place. Too bad some don't care at all. Nature is beautiful and we should keep it that way.
ReplyDeleteHey! Did you notice here that I LOOKED ON THE BRIGHT SIDE? :-)
DeleteIt's so sad the way some people are raised to just not care and be respectful.
ReplyDeleteRespect, that is a word that you don't hear very often these days.
DeleteAfter 50, 60 years of teaching don't litter I don't see any improvement. It's sad.
ReplyDeleteAnd we don't recycle as much as we should. I had a discussion recently with a group of young people at my work and they throw everything away...paper and glass, they throw it all away, something that now can easily be recycled here. Oh well.
DeleteSo many people are selfish and ignorant. It's the way of the world, isn't it?
ReplyDeleteUp to folks like YOU Debra to turn it the other way, I know you are trying your best. xx
DeleteAbsolutely gorgeous! Yes, it is horrible that some people ruin the environment.
ReplyDeleteIt is a gorgeous spot. I just wish that everyone treated it with the special respect that it deserves.
DeleteI don't understand how some people think, Kay! But I'll tell you this, kids get it almost instinctively and they respond to nature with such wonder, enthusiasm, and honesty. We have to wise up as humans or we are going to push our only home past its capacity to provide for us. When I was born: 3 billion, now past 7. And we are becoming increasingly divorced from the natural world. How can we value, support, and protect it, if we don't know it? But there is always HOPE! Have a good one!
ReplyDelete"The Sense of Wonder" by Rachel Carson. Louise, your comment reminded me of this wonderful book.
DeleteWe are becoming increasingly divorced from the natural world and it is such a shame. Still, there is always HOPE!
"The Sense of Wonder" is one of my favorite books, Kay!!! And I am not surprised that you like it!!!
DeleteShooting is too good for those people who dump rubbish!
ReplyDeleteOh no, my plan would be for them to come and sit in a room with me.
DeleteNo physical punishment would be as painful for them, I can assure you.
I wouldn't go quite as far as Adullamite but I go along with the sentiment.
ReplyDeleteHey Graham!
DeleteSee my reply to Adullamite above!
The USA is not alone. It saddens me, travelling about the UK, to see the extent of litter - particularly along roadsides. Not only does it LOOK terrible, it blocks drains and kills wildlife. Shooting might be a cost-effective solution?
ReplyDeleteThe USA is not alone. It saddens me, travelling about the UK, to see the extent of litter - particularly along roadsides. Not only does it LOOK terrible, it blocks drains and kills wildlife. Shooting might be a cost-effective solution?
ReplyDeleteActually, I was very surprised by the LACK of litter when I am in England!
DeleteI know it exists, of course, but on the whole, I think you come out of it better than we do. And I know that all of the plastic especially is bad for the wildlife. They have always told people here to cut the plastic rings on top of the soda cans so as not to trap ducks, it is so sad to see them all tangled up in the plastic and then, they die. NO! to shooting, we have way too much as it is.
I think it is generally the case that people just don't think. There are the hardened litter droppers but they would do it come what may.
ReplyDeleteWe are lucky up here on the Isle of Lewis as our beaches as a general rule are pretty much pristine and litter free. From now on, I shall take a bag with me whilst walking the dog on the beaches and pick up and bin any bottles or cans I see. Small steps and all that..........
Love the look of Arabia Mountain almost as much as Stone Mountain.
Thanks for the postcards - received yesterday. Will email you shortly. x
I have taken quite a bit of litter off of Arabia Mountain. Once, I met someone walking up the mountain as I was walking down, and I was so glad that I had just picked up a bag of rubbish, he said to me with great amazement..."Is this heaven?" NO, but it looks like it if people treat it the way it should be treated!
DeleteOh! I am glad you got the cards! I know you must think me a nutcase getting up on that little stage and singing! :-)
Couldn't agree more but it seems to be getting worse worldwide. Even uninhabited islands in the middle of the Pacific are covered in litter from ships or have floated out to sea from the land. Watched a programme here about modern castaways and the beaches of a remote tropical island in the middle of nowhere were knee deep in litter in places. A real surprise.
ReplyDeleteI have read that plastic bags have been found at both the North and the South poles. In one of my bird magazines, they showed how much plastic had been eaten by birds. Very sad.
DeleteAnother blogger also wrote about this theme recently. I cannot say that there is no littler around northeast Ohio. Oh course there is. But sometime in the late '60s we had a huge campaign against it and I think it is an offense one can be fined for if seen.It worked. There used to be a lot of trash, really a lot, and now only a small amount. And we have "days" for spring cleanup in local communities to remove what litter does exist.
ReplyDeleteIt is isn't just litter that I am speaking about but the rubbish that is left behind and the way that Arabia Mountain is treated. Maybe I didn't write it exactly the way that I wanted to, I have had a rough week and I feel a bit rubbish myself! (Ha, love that expression that they use in England, I think I will steal it.)
DeleteWhat an absolutely gorgeous area! I wrote about that Pogo comics a long, long time ago too. Yes, we can be our own worst enemy, but we can be the hero too.
ReplyDeleteAmen, Kay......I will never understand it. Makes me so sad.
ReplyDelete