Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Enjoy What You've Got, While You've Got It.


"It is not enough to fight for the land; it is even more important to enjoy it. While you can. While it's still here." - Edward Abbey

There is a list of places to see before they disappear due to climate change. Places that we take for granted in the same manner of thinking that our friends and family will always be by our sides. There is a circle of life that occurs and it now appears that the same cycle applies to many of our beloved historical sites.

According to CNN there are some specific sites that scientists expect to be altered or ruined due to climate change. Those locations are: Great Barrier Reef in Australia, Rocky Mountain National Park in Estes Park, Colorado, Alpine Glaciers, Switzerland, the Amazon Rain Forest in Brazil, and my beloved favorite New Orleans, Louisiana. Others have hinted at the demise of The Pyramids of Giza, the Tower of London, the city of Venice, The Dead Sea, Florida Everglades... the list goes on and on. Heck, Frommer's has created a whole book on the 500 places to see before they disappear.

In my world I cannot imagine the possibility of not visiting the rain forest, alps or heading back to N'awlins. In my world we all dance with flowers in our hair while dreaming of places such as those mentioned above. Instead we are destroying the beauty around us. I suppose this metaphor could be used for many scenarios. [insert favorite noun here]. As a sheltered girl who didn't get on a plane until the age of 16 there is nothing more that I want for my children other than to be happy and travel. Traveling opens our eyes, our hearts and our minds. It is a tragic occurrence that we are losing some of the beauty that makes our planet so incredibly wondrous. What will we be left with once its all gone? Pixar has left an indelible mark on me as my mind usually wanders to the scenes from Wall-E when imagining our future world. It looks nothing like the future I imagined as a kid: can you say, Jetsons?!

So get your travel on and go. Forget the new carpet and paint. Forget the boob job you don't need. Go travel. Learn. Listen. See. Those images you stumble across might be gone tomorrow.

No comments:

Post a Comment