I've been watching animals and their relationship to trash. Chopper could care less that he's sharing the water with debris of questionable origin. The ducks, if the trash is of acceptable size, will use it like a raft, and bob along the marina looking for handouts. The crabs and fish will gladly make a house out of whatever refuse fits their needs. Birds sift through the garbage finding wiggly things to eat. Muskrats navigate the water pushing aside bottles and branches with equal equanimity. Only the human animal disdains trash, all the while producing it in great heaps. Consumerism ends its cycle on our sidewalks and in our waters. We care, but not enough to stop and pick up that styrofoam cooler; the ducks don't care and use that cooler as their personal floatation device. One man's trash is another duck's treasure? I feel there's a lesson here, a metaphor, an irony that I can't pinpoint. What do you guys think?
5 comments:
It saddens me to see trash floating or flying as we usually see it on the wind or waving from the branches of a tree. In far West Texas you can actually gauge how far the next Wal-Mart is by how many bags you can see in the trees. I used to have a bumper sticker that read "BYOBag... plastic blows!"
That's pretty clever...I've seen some artists collect thousands of those plastic bags and make this really cool monster costume, also have you seen those crocheted (is that how you spell that?) plastic bag rugs?
Trash is only trash if you look at it as worthless
We have a girls 'club' at our school for girls who have the potential of being bullies. One of their service projects this year was to make crocheted sleeping mats from plastic shopping bags. The mats were given to homeless people.
Hi Travis and Maggie! I really like your blog and am sad that I've caught up to real time. I've just dipped my toes into the world of boating this spring, and reading about all the love and work you have put into your two boats is inspiring. Good luck and happy travels!
-Dave on the Hudson.
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