In My Own Backyard: From Refuse to Reflection

From Refuse to Reflection

My earliest memories begin of myself at four years old. At that time, I had an older brother and sister, and a baby brother. My parents had this really cool looking red Plymouth car, complete with gear shifting push buttons and big tail fins. The front seat was a huge bench; I hate to admit it, but my dad would let me stand beside him while he drove, my little arm draped across the back of his neck. I remember standing there on one trip when my dad asked me how old I was. I still have this mental picture of him grinning at me when I held up my entire hand to show him I had turned five! As I grew, so did our family, with the addition of another brother. This time, my parents bought a Rambler station wagon. The older kids and the baby sat in the middle seat, while my oldest little brother and I got the back seat. It was awesome, as the seat faced backwards. Since our backs were to everyone else in the car, our parents couldn’t see what we were doing, and they were too far away to do anything about it even if they could’ve seen! When my family would take long trips (they were only about two or three hours, which seemed like an eternity when I was small), my brother and I would take toys along with us: I usually took my miniature farm animals and he would bring his cars. We would slouch down on the floor and give puppet-type shows to the cars behind us. We lived on a country road, about six miles outside of our town. One time as we were nearing home, with my brother and I horsing around in the rear-facing seat, my brother took one of my shoes and threw it out the back window. For some reason, we both found this hilarious. My parents, not so much.

One item that I seem to remember always being in both of these childhood cars was a “litter bag”. There were several anti-litter campaigns that I still remember: “Please Don’t Be a Littler Bug”, “Every Litter Bit Hurts”, and “Give a Hoot, Don’t Pollute”. It was ingrained in me that I should never throw anything out my car window. I carry this practice still today, although I did get out of the habit of putting any kind of trash bag in my car. The pandemic of the last year changed that for me. My husband and I both started keeping plastic bags in our vehicles, so that we could throw away disposable wipes and used face masks. It’s a practice that I hope to continue even when we are through this pandemic, as it’s quite convenient! Who knew?!

A few years ago, a friend of mine told me that she sometimes takes a trash bag with her when she walks, and picks up trash. I thought this to be an excellent idea. I purchased a long-handled “grabber”, armed myself with an old plastic bag, and off I went. Each time I have picked up trash, I’ve been rather shocked at what I’ve found by the side of the road. Some things didn’t surprise me, like pop cans, fast food wrappers, plastic cups, empty cigarette packs, and lots...I mean LOTS...of cigarette butts. But I did find myself rather intrigued by a few things, and allowed myself to create stories to go with the items I found. The old, chewed up tennis ball was, perhaps, dropped out the window by a dog eager to get to the park. Barretts and scrunchies snatched from the hair of a little girl who was enjoying the feel of the wind in her face. A single shoe made me think of my brother and smile. One lonely glove, knowing it would never again see it’s mate. I’ve wondered if the beer bottles, cans , and single shot bottles of various alcohol drinks were emptied in haste and in secret. A licked-clean quart-sized tub of potato salad may have been consumed to tide someone over until they could get home for supper. A pair of black latex gloves (found before the pandemic) had my mind screeching to a halt. Funny what life experiences will do,

One item that has me baffled is the small disposable floss picks. I find MANY of these on the ground, in an array of colors. I worry that people aren’t paying enough attention to their driving, if they are attempting to floss their teeth while at the wheel. And wouldn’t if be safe to say that if you’re that worried about healthy gums, you might also be concerned about a healthy Earth? Perhaps I can do some good and start my own anti-littering campaign. I’ll call it “Don’t Toss the Floss”.

Regardless of the story behind each item, they were used and then tossed out the window like so much...well, uhm, garbage. I wish it weren’t so. I’m not asking all of you to join me in picking up trash so that our pretty little town will stay pretty. But maybe it would be a good idea if we would all carry a trash bag of sorts in our cars or on our bikes, so that we don’t become litterbugs. Teach our kids to be stewards of the Earth instead of users. It can’t hurt, right?