Water in my Nostrils

Rebellion is one of my love languages.

God, I love the ocean. I remember lying on my stomach waiting for the waves to hit me as I let my body go limp as a child and rode the waves, in and out. Feeling the sand run over my body and caress my skin. Water would jet up into my nostrils and I’d break over the wave spitting salt and sand out of my mouth. Some people don’t like it, but I loved it. The innocent way my child like brain believed, the ocean will always be here.

Things can be better…

Life is not meant to be destroyed, but to grow and evolve. I think about how I have changed from little pupa to fun loving butterfly. The ocean was perfect, and my skin was tan. I changed my sunscreen, to more natural ingredients that doesn’t hurt the components of the ocean because I want the ocean to always be here. Not just for me but for the future of the life process that gives us everything.

The ocean holds more wonder than I could ever see in it. I once saw a turtle, chilling with some fish. They were all happily eating and nipping at the ocean floor, as I was keeping my distance and swimming above them when I saw a piece of trash. A square piece of trash, perhaps it contained gummy bears, condom, hand wipes, or even Advil, once upon a time. I knew it didn’t belong. I grabbed and threw it in my pocket. I like to imagine this piece of trash will not make it back to the ocean a second time but will be correctly recycled, as I took the first steps to recycle it. My partner was glad I grabbed it but was pessimistic about it returning to the ocean. I recycled it anyway, in the hope that it wouldn’t.

Caring about the ecological system is hard when society doesn’t participate the way you wish it would. This isn’t a story about others though. This is a story about individual contributions. Hard topic especially considering the amount of pollution corporate does every day but pay attention. The strangest thing about unlearning the habits of ancestors as they assumed with ignorance that they couldn’t harm the ocean, atmosphere, or earth. We are now the generation that must. I was not raised to conserve but to consume. Having an environmental conscious doesn’t always feel like it pays off, but developing your skills and knowledge takes time like everything.

Treating the ocean with care doesn’t always require you to be in the ocean. I wake up every morning for my cup of tea and after I smell the delicious steeping water turn to the delicious dark color of flavor, caffeine, and heat… I drop the tea bag into the compost bin. The developing process of creating a healthy ideology towards the environment is a constant awareness.

Awareness. This word keeps coming back to me. Awareness to breathe clean air. Awareness to swim in clean oceans. Awareness to walk on green grass. I am creating with in my own power and rights, a world that I want to live in. I want the future of evolving to remain environmentally friendly. I want seeds to evolve into trees, I want those trees to let go of their seeds and grow some neighbors. I appreciate the cycle of life and hope that my individual contribution will help. Creating that awareness in ourselves is hard but necessary.

Does society have enough awareness to change our reality…Maybe? Maybe not. But I strive every day to remember that I want to coexist not dominate.

To give and receive, so I’ll drink my tea by the sea.

By Rae Wright