Refelction on "The Nature of the Everglades" by Marjory Stoneman Douglas

Page 126 of colloquium reader
"Water in the rains runs North to Caloosahatchee, west to the seacoast, in some of those small rivers like the Estero and the Imperial, once called Surveyor's Creek, and the Corkscrew River, and into Trafford Lake and Deep Lake, and others.... South is the mass of the Big Cypress."

Let me start by saying I enjoyed the rich details Douglas gives in this excerpt. I chose this specific quote because I could relate. I've been on the Estero River and hiked at Big Cypress. The images the reading created in my mind reminded me of my moments outside.

Big Cypress                                                                  Big Cypress

            

Page 140 of colloquium reader
"It is one of those trees people call rubber trees or Banyans. They are all Ficus, but the strangler is Ficus aurea. A strangler seed dropped by a bird in a cranny of oak bark will sprout and send down fine brown root hairs that dangle and lengthen until they touch the ground."

                Banyan trees are incredible.







 Estero River                                                            Banyan Tree in Estero River

Page 128-129 of colloquium reader
"The life and death of the saw grass is only a moment of that flow in which time, the vastest river, carries us and all life forward. The water is timeless, forever new and eternal. Only the rock, which time shaped will outlast, records unimaginable ages."

This is a nice line that stuck out. It really shows how time is free from all burdens. Everything is always occurring in the now. Energy flows forward like life and the river. Life is short when you compare it to the history of the rock we stand on. On page 134, Doulas wrote "time never stops". It is mind-boggling to think about the millions of years that have gone by, and I've only seen 20 of them. I want to seize every moment.

Thoughts on "The Land Ethic" by Aldo Leopold

Page 75-76 of colloquium reader
"It is inconceivable to me that an ethical relation to land can exist without love, respect, and admiration for land, and a high regard for its value...your true modern is separated from the land by many middlemen, and by innumerable physical gadgets...synthetic substitutes for wood, leather, wool, and other natural land products suit him better than the originals. In short, land is something he has outgrown."

I feel this way every single day. I traveled to Andros Island, Bahamas last summer for a field study in environmental science. We visited a town called Red Bays and I am jealous of their lifestyle. The people of Red Bays live much more land conscious lifestyle. They aren't consumed by their physical gadgets (phones/computers/television- which most of them don't even own) and many of them understand the importance of wild species protection. They catch and grow much of their food instead of purchasing these things. I would give anything to own a piece of land somewhere I could self sustain. I met a man named Wilton Russell who does woodcarving and music for a living. He only takes what he needs for his family and I have much respect for Mr. Russell.

Me and Wilton Russell

Many of us here in the states are so consumed in the culture. We watch way too much television and believe everything the 'experts' tell us. We have accepted the monetary system and economics as reality. We all need to go outside more often, make a life for ourselves, grow our own personal gardens, and stop depending on large corporations to mass produce our food. Large biotech companies like Monsanto are controlling our food resources and that is an issue. Much of the problem starts with our disconnect to the land. I'm native to Florida, and I feel if someone is native to a place they have a right to a portion of the land. Unfortunately, this is not the case.  Even if we own land we must pay taxes on it. A broken economic system, and the belief that it can be fixed is limiting many people like myself from living a self sustaining lifestyle. Industry is killing us. Our entire lives we are told "Get a job you slob, get a degree, get a this, get a that, its the only way." In reality, life is much simpler. I often contemplate packing my bags in search of a place on Earth where I can live like Russell.

Page 68 of colloquium reader
"Each successive layer depends on those below it for food and often for other services, and each in turn furnishes food and services to those above."

The phrase "you are what you eat" has never been more literal. Whatever we consume becomes a part of our bodies. For centuries, humans have genetically selected for certain fruits by crossing them with other fruits to obtain an ideal crop. This process involved using two species of crop that had similar enough reproductive organs to cross with one another. This is where we got things like mandarin, grapefruit, tangelo, and the Loganberry. Today, we have the technology to insert genes into an organism's DNA, or genetically engineer a new species. Large corporations are mass producing genetically engineered crops like soybean, canola, and corn, shipping it overseas, and feeding it to an uninformed public. These products are usually not labeled GMO. The idea of genetic engineering is too recent to know the possible long term health effects associated with it. I try my best to avoid eating them since we are what we eat, and I'm not a genetically modified organism. I really believe that many of today's cancers and health issues could be linked to what we put into our bodies. Wild organic food is the way to go. Why do we depend on massive scale agriculture when we could cultivate our own crops and catch our own wild food?

This reminds me of a quote from the book "Four Fish" by Paul Greenberg
Here it is straight from page 13
"But is modern man capable of consciously creating restraint without some outside force, like war? Is there some wiser incarnation of the hunter-gatherer that will compel us to truly conserve our wild food, or is humanity actually hardwired to eradicate the wild majority and then domesticate a tiny subset? Can we not resist the urge to remake a wild system, to redirect the energy flow of that system in a way that serves us?"

Page 73 of colloquium reader
"A land ethic, then, reflects the existence of an ecological conscience, and this in turn reflects a conviction of individual responsibility for the health of the land."

It is up to everyone to develop a sense of ecological conscience. Everyone has a direct impact on the Earth we walk upon, and everyone is responsible. We are just one huge family. A lot of societal pressures prevent many people from accomplishing this. We live in a world that rewards competition. We do what we can to profit for ourselves even if it doesn't better the community. An example would be the farmers that selected remedial practices which were profitable to themselves, ignoring those profitable to the community. Garrett Hardin explained it as "Tragedy of the Commons".  People will act in a manner that directly benefits themselves economically, often ignoring or failing to realize the long-term best interest of a community, resulting in depletion of a limited shared resource. I think mankind needs to step back and think about the Earth as an entire biosphere. We need to put down our imaginary borders and stop being so divided. The truth is, when we look at a map we see cities, then districts, then states, then a country, then a continent. None of these things actually exist. We just act like they do. We are a part of the biological network. Humans are a global species. It is up to the farmers, the fishermen, and every single one of us to make a conscious decision to protect the species of our land. There is only one border that defines us and it is round.

 

"Earth from Space : Image of the Day." Earth from Space : Image of the Day. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Jan. 2014. <http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=885>.

Thoughts on Richard Louv's "Nature-Deficit Disorder  and The Restorative Environment"

Page 3 of colloquium reader

"ADHD is now considered by many researchers to be an organic disorder associated with differences in the brain morphology of children...Between 2000 and 2003, spending for ADHD on preschoolers increased 369 percent"

It angers me that people consider ADHD to be an organic disorder. I do not believe that ADHD should be considered as an excuse to deal with hyper people. My cousin was diagnosed with ADHD and his parents put him on Ritalin. I can say from experience that he was a normal kid. He didn't excel in academics so the parents concluded that he needed meds to help keep him focused. He used to tell me he hated taking his medication and that it didn't help him focus any better in class. I think the real issue had nothing to do with a hyperactive lack of focus and a lot to do with lack of interest in school all together. When students are bored from reading textbooks and doing classwork we tend to daydream and think about what we'd rather be doing with our time. Students miss out on a lot of social activities etc. whenever we're forced to study things that do not interest us. I believe my cousin was simply not interested in academics. He is hands on like me. He enjoys being outside, seeing trees, breathing air, and doing physical labor. The world has such a demand on children to be successful. A lot of the time society tends to believe success comes from studies. I'm not claiming that a college degree can't help you be successful, but success doesn't come from a qualification. Success comes from people working hard at something they believe in. Maybe, we need a different approach to learning. A more hands on approach that gets kids out of the books. Give kids something to study that they're passionate about and they will go places. Give them a musical instrument to learn or a car to build. I think too many kids are labeled as ADHD by teachers and parents that are too lazy to deal with a bored fed-up student. So, it is easier to put them on medication because that's what researchers and experts recommend. I also think the increased spending on ADHD is a waste. People are hung up on medical cures. Medical companies produce millions of prescription pills and create a huge market selling their poison to people that don't know any better. Some medical discoveries are miracles. People with diabetes need insulin. Call it what you want but ADHD medicine is legal meth and it affects the brain like other stimulants do. Bored youngsters that are acting out do not have morphological differences in their brain. If we continue to feed our children ADHD meds that affect their natural functioning brains, we are only clouding their creative thoughts and damaging the organic brain they are so lucky to have.

Pages 6-7
"In 2001, Hartig demonstrated that nature can help people recover from normal psychological wear and tear-but nature also improves the capacity to pay attention...those who had walked in the nature preserve performed better than the other participants on a standard proofreading task. They also reported more positive emotions and less anger."

I can vouch for this personally. Nature helps me cope with my stresses and leads to a happier me. After I got dumped by my girlfriend and childhood friend of 8 years I was the lowest I've ever been. The one thing that helped me move on was hiking. Hiking allowed me to slow down and think. The natural settings definitely soothe my soul. Something about being so far out away from all the noise is soothing. It pulls you away from studies, work, and everything clouding your vision of what is actually important to YOU. I have for sure 100% noticed a change in the past year in my attitude towards school and just life in general. I'm much happier than I have ever been. I think nature is always there for us and we are too caught up in the mix of things to appreciate it. The world is a happier place with more trees in it.

Page 5
"Our brains are set up for an agrarian, nature-oriented existence that came into focus five thousand years ago...Neurologically, human beings haven't caught up with today's over-stimulating environment"

I agree. The modern world demands so much from us. We need a computer to look at, a phone to make calls, a car to drive, and a grocery store to buy our food from. The truth is we are just animals. The things we need to exist are provided in nature. We wouldn't catch a wild animal, put them into a concrete atmosphere and expect them to have a normal functioning brain. Humans are no different. We evolved out of the woodwork just like all living things on the entire planet did. Our relationship with the earth and its plants is deep in our roots. We've been munching on plants and whatever we could gather for thousands of years. I think humanity is due for a big wake up call. We can't keep up what we're doing to the earth at this rate if we want to protect our fragile ecosystems for the future. We evolved to sustain our lives with what the earth provided. And she provided us with limited resources. Technology has come a long way in the past 100 years and it seems we are drifting away from our "agrarian, nature-oriented existence" and segregating ourselves as far away from nature as possible. Its even hard to find organic produce in the store (a lot of produce contains GMO's and pesticides). When I do find organic produce the price on it is unaffordable. It saddens me to know that we have created a monetary system which we allow to dominate everything. Until mankind created this false reality, the earth used to provide more than we could ever need. We, as conscious people, can revert back to an organic lifestyle, ditch the things not necessary to our survival, and create a "neo-paleolithic" community.