So many years have passed since my family returned home after my father's time in the Air Force. After 20 years, they did not give him a promotion that was hoped for unless he would move us to another state. I guess he was tired of the travel and uprooting our family. The decision was made to move home to Alabama. Home to my parents at least, they basically grew up in Alabama. They attended Bishop Toolen and McGill in their own schools. We had a home here that we owned and had been rented for several years. This move also meant that I would spend the last two years of high school in another state. My brothers were young, but I had friends and most of all I felt at the time the young man I might eventually marry.
It was upsetting to say the least to all of us as well that the house in which we planned to live was in a state of ruin. The renters had basically trashed the house, the kitchen sink was falling over in a cabinet that was rotten. Our home nevertheless..............
My father would not arrive until December and we were here in August so we could go to school. That thought did not appeal to me either, I had just gotten out of school in mid June.
My new high school, Murphy 1976 started in August, less than one week after we arrived in Alabama. Add to that we were living with my grandmother in Chickasaw until we could remove the renters from the house. (It was finally accomplished with the help of the Sheriffs department.)
My mother and I spent many hours cleaning, clearing, and repairing what we could.
Eventually I settled in, made new friends in both theater and the "nerds". I also joined ROTC and was made the supply officer for the group. I also started to look at the beauty around me on the coast. One of my main concerns was the pelicans that were almost gone from the effects of DDT. I was a child of the 70's and was very aware of the damage we were doing to our planet. Eventually the powers that be realized it was the chemicals affecting the birds, making their shells too weak to even be set upon to hatch them. DDT was removed and the shells again became able to withstand the parents setting on them. These beautiful birds have made a comeback to say the least! They are so interesting to watch when they are fishing so much that they can't fly because of the weight!
Today's problem is garbage, plastic to be precise. Every piece of plastic ever manufactured on our planet is still here, in one form or another. Plastic breaks down eventually to microscopic levels and is in our oceans. All of the food chain is being affected, including humans. The North Pacific Gyre is the one with the most increase in plastic particles. It throws plastic to the Midway Atoll where nearly all Laysan Albatrosses have plastic in their digestive system. About 1/3 of the chicks die because out of the 20 tons of plastic that washes up, 5 tons are being fed to the chicks.
This is only the beginning of the consequences of our actions.
The United Nations Oceans Conference estimates that the oceans might contain more weight in plastics than fish by the year 2050!
We all need to recycle, recycle, recycle and refuse all styrofoam as it lasts forever.
Stepping off my soapbox now, I leave you dear readers with Pelicans Fly Free!
Pelicans Fly Free! Acrylic on canvas, 24 x 24 shadowbox canvas
Day 82 of the 100 days~100 paintings 2017
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