shivanidee
Registered: December 2009
City/Town/Province: centreville
Posts: 1
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The Earth is a place of wonder, a beautiful land that is home to many creatures. Unfortunately, many people do not view our home this way; they dump trash on the roads, and pollute the oceans. Growing up in India, these actions were common. Garbage covered the streets all over the nation and my mother wouldn’t let me go to the beach because of the contamination of the water. Coming to America, the land of dreams and opportunities, my family and I saw people working to clean our environment, and their cause and determination radiated outwards to reach us. Commands such as ‘help”, “volunteer” and “give back” were thrown at us like life jackets. We took hold of them, took hold of them strongly.
On a recent trip to Virginia Beach, my family and I were determined to not only have fun, but to clean the beach and help save our world. There were a few palm trees interspersed between the unused trash cans. My brother and I scavenged along the sand and found half-empty soda cans, plastic water bottles, crumpled-up chip bags, and much more. Virginia Beach consists of a large beach and a parallel boardwalk. Many people stroll from the boardwalk to the beach and dispose of their waste in a dreadful manner. I believed it was very important to clean the beach because it is the junction between two worlds: the world of land animals, and the underwater world. Much of the debris found alongside the ocean is pulled in by its currents during high tide. This garbage can choke the many types of fish that call those waters “home” including blue marlin, flounder and trout, and sharks and hurt other sea animals. My family and I managed to clean about a fourth of a mile of beach. This happiness, however, can only last so long. I know that the beach will be littered again soon, and I will not be there to clean it up. I hope that by watching my family, other beach-goers were inspired to emulate us. Working alone for a cause cannot bring the joy or affects that working together can.
Soon after, I conducted many more “trash clean ups” in my own neighborhood of Centreville, Virginia. I wandered around the community with a giant trash bag and a small group of friends. We beautified the shores of the ponds and the sides of the many hiking trails.
As humans, the species that has dominated the earth and utilized all of its offerings, we are duty-bound to protect our home and keep it clean, so it can be used and enjoyed by future generations. These experiences have taught me many lessons about the sanctity of life of all kinds, and the importance of remembering that everything we have, we made, we are, is because of our beautiful Earth.
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