Staff Writer - Katrin Callender
Like several of my friends, I love nature. They are dubious because I run from most animals and seem out of place whenever I leave the concrete jungle that is the city of Port of Spain.
But the truth is, as much as I love living with such –dare I say- luxuries as indoor plumbing and electricity, I respect the earth and every living organism on it.
I find few things more irksome than thoughtless individuals tossing their garbage about the city, or rural areas, and especially on our beaches. We live and go to rejuvenate in these cities, rural areas, and beaches. How can we be anything but invested in their preservation?
A piece of art outside a building in the city suggests something to the effect that ‘we do not inherit the earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children”.
However, I am inclined to think it is a bit of both. Whatever the correct position to take, if indeed there is one, we have seen campaigns urging us to reduce, reuse and recycle.
Activists have exhausted themselves spreading the word. We must recognize that we know this mantra and share it with those younger than ourselves. Whether inherited or borrowed, it is our responsibility now. And we can alter it for the better or for worse.
Personally, I want to leave it in such a divine state that the next generation can be pleased, or jealous, or just live to see it. There are so many people whose health and spirits would improve, if their surroundings did.
Jay-Z and Beyonce on a Caribbean beach
Consider every mall and school and office that had a fountain, plants or trees in their driveways and reception areas. We feel relaxed and we enjoy being there. Maybe they are no different from those that do not have the same décor.
Yet, it has been my experience that staff and clients operating in such environments interact well with each other, better than those in congested unattractive workplaces.
When we look at the news and see puppy mills, prisons and some hospitals across the globe, the thing that separates these from animal shelters, other prisons and other hospitals, is often the way the space is organized and the animals and people within.
Does the arrangement reflect comfort or at least contentment? Does it promote a sense of dignity? Does it seem to say, all here are equally welcomed and equally valued?
Similarly, what separates some parks and beaches from others, may be an aesthetic that speaks to its function. But why should a park or beach frequented by tourists look any better than the one used by locals?
So many countries have begun to encourage locals to partake of the pleasures of their own homelands rather than go abroad in response to the economic crisis.
Whether we will stay at a local hotel to mark a special occasion or in answer to the call from our tourism industry, or go to the local beach as is customary, remember to see its value. It is home. It is memory. It is ours to treasure.
