Summary

The author finds profound beauty in a delicate leaf skeleton amidst a massive garbage dump on the island of Nevis, symbolizing hope and resilience in the face of environmental degradation.

Abstract

While working to clean up a large garbage pile on Nevis, the author discovers a beautiful leaf skeleton, which serves as a poignant reminder of nature's resilience and beauty amidst human-caused environmental destruction. This discovery reinvigorates the author's commitment to environmental conservation, despite the overwhelming scale of the pollution problem. The leaf, found in a place of waste and neglect, becomes a symbol of the tiny, often overlooked wonders that can inspire continued efforts to protect the planet.

Opinions

The author expresses disgust at the existence of the garbage pile and the environmental disregard it represents.
There is a sense of outrage towards the idea of burning the garbage pile, due to the environmental harm it would cause.
The author views the leaf skeleton as a gift or sign from nature, emphasizing the importance of finding and appreciating small beauties in life.
The discovery of the leaf skeleton strengthens the author's resolve to continue their environmental work, suggesting a deep-seated belief in the power of small acts of conservation.
The author implies a critique of society's handling of waste, highlighting the need for better waste management practices.

WRITING PROMPT RESPONSE

The Beauty of Life Is Found In the Tiny Things

And I relish in the joy of finding them!

The skeleton of this leaf truly took my breath away. Photo Credit: Author

Sometimes, even amongst the most horrific things we see in the world, we can also find the most profound beauty.

I was blown away by the delicateness of this leaf that I found on the island of Nevis in the Caribbean. I was doubly blown away because I found it in a garbage dump pile!

The same leaf as in the photo above. Photo Credit: Author

You can see some of the refuse that we had pulled out below the photo. It was a massive pile at least 5 m (15 feet) high, that was full of seats from cars, paint buckets, foam, food waste, PVC pipes, electrical chords, a lawnmower, plastic, plastic, and more plastic (and who knows what else!)

The owner of the place where we were working claimed that she didn’t know about this pile, but the waste management department from the island had found it, and told her that she had to get rid of it. The chief staff member that had been with her for over 30 years, had plans to set fire to it the very next morning.

“You can’t burn it! The black smoke will send me straight to jail!” She proclaimed!

We agreed, of course. You can’t burn a pile of garbage like that!

Unfortunately, though, the pile had been mixed with palm leaves, branches, and other garden refuse, so the only option was to go through it and pull it apart, getting things sorted to get picked up by a dumpster, while setting aside the organic material.

At one point, the others had all left me alone at the pile. I was standing looking at the mess, with my hands on my hips, when I somehow looked down to find this stunning leaf skeleton in amongst the refuse.

Here I was, absolutely disgusted with everything around me.

The fact that this pile existed at all.
The mix of disgusting crap that was in the pile.
The blatant disregard of humans for the environment.
The outrageousness that somebody had the gall to just burn it all.

Then this.

A stunning piece of art from Mother Nature. Photo Credit: Author

Was it a gift from the heavens? A sign that there is still beauty in the world.

I obviously couldn’t help but stop what I was doing, inspect it for a few moments, and take a few pictures.

Somehow it was a reminder to keep going.

To keep helping the earth.

To keep doing good for Mother Nature.

It gave me the strength to keep pulling apart that pile, at a moment when I was all but ready to give up.

I gently set it to the side, then continued on with our mission. One way or the other, this pile had to go and I knew then that I would never stop fighting for the beautiful things on our planet.

I have always been fascinated with tiny things. So thank you to Dennett for making the April writing prompt about Tiny Packages. (I did warn you that there would be a few posts!)

Tiny Packages

April Weeds & Wildflowers Writing Prompt

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Hi there, we are 2 Canadians, Jill and Chris from Artistic Voyages. We have been nomadic since 2017 living in numerous different countries, and experiencing the life and diversity of our planet on the ground and firsthand. We have now been on the African continent for over 2 years! Join our adventure by hitting the links below! Subscribe to Medium to get full access to my writing plus thousands of others’!