Ocean's Cry

Over sixty percent of sea pollution is there due to fishing malpractice the boy heard in one of the documentaries a few months earlier, it is true…

Walking across the wild beach of northern Scotland he felt the squeeze, in which his heart was caught. Like a fish struggling to get out of the net set for its doom, the boy’s planet was being mistreated by the human race. Looking down at the crisp sand – nature’s best, his eyes couldn’t resist the overwhelming presence of green, blue, and vivid orange colours of fishing nets, ropes, and slings – forgotten, lost and abandoned memories of the fishing spree. The beach was far from any civilization, one that would bring appreciation for any wilderness lover. It was also completely polluted. Even here, far from the hustle and bustle of our busy, profit-driven culture, nature struggles with our stuff he heard his heart crying, even here we managed to trespass nature’s peace.

*

Bringing along a few bags for trash quickly came up as one of the best ideas the group has come up with. After filling up three of them to the point when the sides couldn’t hold much more, ripping and losing their structure in the face of rubbish overwhelm, the five grabbed whatever else they could and dragged it all towards the footpath. Someone from the tourists or locals will have to pick them up the boy thought leaving a vivid-red, capitol-lettered note stuck to one of the bags, we can only hope they do…

*

Remembering the many campaigns, which the major nature-focused organisations offered to those who were willing to listen and participate, the boy felt irritated. How come we don’t point out fishing as the main problem he heard his inner voice asking in annoyance, turn plastic straws to paper, reuse your bottles, do not pack in plastic bags… All of the campaigns flashed one after another in front of his mind’s eye, as he tried to bring up any memory of a fishing-aimed campaign. All of them, great initiatives, but none, he realised, none that would raise awareness of the fishing issue. Looking at the trash collected in the bags and scanning the beach’s planes, he shook his head in disbelief. Yet it is by far the biggest problem of them all…

*

It was not that the other campaigns were wrong. It is great to do as much as one can within one’s vicinity to help the planet, which is already overbearingly mistreated by the human species. But realising that the fish industry was still accepted in the form, which the majority of it presented, the boy felt ashamed for the mistakes his fellow men were making. We contribute by buying he thought, the cheaper the better… The difficulty of the price was obvious. Those products, which were more appealing to the wider public, were also often cheaper than any other. Of course, it was an obvious choice for those who struggle with funds. It was also questionable. Where does the absurdly low price come from the boy reasoned, it doesn’t appear without expenses saving at some stage of the product’s production and delivery…

*

Sitting down by the side of the beach, he looked at the horizon. We are here as guests and we treat it like a junkyard he sighed, saving money appeals to us more than saving the planet… Troubled with the thoughts that kept arising one after another, like waves reaching the shore, only to be followed by more and more waves, he pondered. It is a choice between refraining from eating a specific thing, such as fish, or accepting that one is taking part in this vicious cycle of production destruction… The choice is ours. Every day.

Check out my other piece:

https://www.wsalski.com/post/dream-of-life

#prose #creativewriting #thoughts #fishing #pollution #fishingindustry #environment #foodforthought #living #inspiration #truestory #worldhealth #savetheocean