Nature versus me

Ever since I was a kid I was never a big fan of nature. When my friends  joined nature club I would be engaged in literary activities, when my friends would be busy making flower gardens, I will be busy reading fiction books and when they will be rejoicing the beauty of the nature I would be lost in my world of fantasy.   Nature could never draw my attention and the terms like global warming, green house effect, glacier lake outburst etc where purely academic for me. There wasn’t a spiritual connection between me and nature.   So when I have to participate in essay competition and have to prepare speeches, I either wrote or spoke about this phenomenon just for the sake of competition. I just followed the simple rule: I do not dump my waste improperly and I do not pick the waste dumped by other.

Until recently things has started to change. As usual my environmental science tutor was lecturing about the waste management and its effect.  He asked us to do the presentation on that topic the next day.  Since I was quite lazy to prepare all the presentation on the topic municipal waste, we divided the portions among the group member. I had to do on the preventive measures.  I browsed net and jotted down few points. I didn’t even practice the presentation and dozed off. As usual the presentation started and my turn came. I always loved presentation so I started explaining my points that I have copied from net with my hand movements which I can’t avoid.

      1.      Do not over order your food when visiting restaurant.

      2.      Make a list while going for shopping

      3.      Utilizing one’s own personal plastic or refusing plastics.

      4.      Know you capacity.

After that presentation, whenever I go to mess, restaurant ,picnic, shopping  etc  when I fail to follow what I have said  during my presentation ,my friends would tease me saying that I am not sticking to what I have said. I told them a couple of times that it was just for the sake of presentation.  They would not leave me alone sadly and then I thought why can’t I try what I have presented. So I started practicing starting from knowing my capacity to ordering food in the restaurant. Now whenever I go to town I carry my hand bag which is big enough to put my stuffs and when I refuse plastic from shop keepers they thank me and I felt happy. I am still working on making list while going for shopping.  By doing such things I felt a spiritual connection as if I have finally come home.

Somehow I learned from my tutor and presentation by my friends that whatever I have learned so far is not just for the academic or competition purpose. Global warming, green house effect, solid waste problem are out there and we have to act now or it will be too late. It’s not just the organization or government who are solely responsible to tackle such issues. All of us as an individual are responsible and we need to take part in our own small way in resolving such issues. I have already taken up my role though not intentionally in the beginning. I am learning ways to work on in my small way to save this mother earth. And I hope you would figure out your own way.