I went down into the ravine this morning. The sun was shining and the birds were singing. The forest smelled so nice and foresty and the flowers were blooming everywhere. I took some photos and said 'Hello' to others who were enjoying the quiet solitude of the woods. Then I came upon a grassy area of Morningside Park, where there are picnic tables set up, a splash pad for children and washroom facilities for everyone. It's a wonderful place for a picnic and I have been there with students and family alike. But what I saw this morning made my blood boil.
Garbage everywhere, left by some messy picnickers. Maybe they were rained out, but I think the rain would have announced itself long before it started to fall. Surely they could have put their garbage into the cans provided. You can see some in the distance, perhaps 50 meters or so away.
They had even left their table cloths. And stuff on the tables, charcoal brickets and even the hibachi's they used to cook their meal.
Here is a bag, already to go into the trash, but they left it under a picnic table. The yellow bag is from nofrills, and I know it says, 'We won't be beat', but I am reading 'Don't be neat'.
This was not a small party. There had to have been many people enjoying themselves. So why did they leave such a mess? I can only scratch my head. The most ironic thing about it all was that on the south side of the tables were eight more garbage and recycling cans, only a few steps away.
I am sure the park's staff will clean this mess up. Probably if I had come by again in the afternoon it would have looked as if no one had been there. But who pays for that? Me, I guess, as a tax payer.
Didn't our mothers teach us to be neat? To clean up our own messes? It's such a small act of human decency. And it only takes a few minutes. When I was a Girl Guide leader I taught my girls to take nothing from nature and only leave a foot print. I think the saying goes, 'Take only photos and leave nothing but a footprint'. But even that might be too much if the area is a sensitive one. But take as much garbage out as you can carry. If everyone did this the world and our parks would be a better place.
Last year my DD took her class to this park as part of a 'clean up our waterways'. I wrote about it here. No wonder they collected so much garbage they could barely carry it all.
I\ll get off my soapbox now. If we don't all do our part, the world will not be worth living in.
Garbage everywhere, left by some messy picnickers. Maybe they were rained out, but I think the rain would have announced itself long before it started to fall. Surely they could have put their garbage into the cans provided. You can see some in the distance, perhaps 50 meters or so away.
They had even left their table cloths. And stuff on the tables, charcoal brickets and even the hibachi's they used to cook their meal.
Here is a bag, already to go into the trash, but they left it under a picnic table. The yellow bag is from nofrills, and I know it says, 'We won't be beat', but I am reading 'Don't be neat'.
This was not a small party. There had to have been many people enjoying themselves. So why did they leave such a mess? I can only scratch my head. The most ironic thing about it all was that on the south side of the tables were eight more garbage and recycling cans, only a few steps away.
I am sure the park's staff will clean this mess up. Probably if I had come by again in the afternoon it would have looked as if no one had been there. But who pays for that? Me, I guess, as a tax payer.
Didn't our mothers teach us to be neat? To clean up our own messes? It's such a small act of human decency. And it only takes a few minutes. When I was a Girl Guide leader I taught my girls to take nothing from nature and only leave a foot print. I think the saying goes, 'Take only photos and leave nothing but a footprint'. But even that might be too much if the area is a sensitive one. But take as much garbage out as you can carry. If everyone did this the world and our parks would be a better place.
Last year my DD took her class to this park as part of a 'clean up our waterways'. I wrote about it here. No wonder they collected so much garbage they could barely carry it all.
I\ll get off my soapbox now. If we don't all do our part, the world will not be worth living in.
3 comments:
It's almost like a Stephen King novel. They disappeared into thin air leaving behind all their stuff.
Certainly worth a rant! But I have to wonder if something didn't happen that made everybody leave suddenly - like a fall or a stroke - otherwise why would they leave behind table cloths and BBQs. Kind of strange! Almost eerie!
This is a HUGE peeve of ours too. How long does it take to throw everything in the rubbish bin. People can be so lazy ....
Post a Comment