March 20,2022: Tracing separate paths beneath that great cerulean sea where even starlight drowns in azure shades, the committed volunteers of AYLUS’s Raritan Valley Branch concurred this day upon Great Oak Park. Over time, the bleak shadow of human pollution had fallen over the land, but the damage by humans caused can be by humans fixed. And so, to that end, those volunteers then took up arms to drive back the encroaching hand of pollution.
After meeting at the park, we all split bags and trash-grabbers among ourselves and spread out to cover a wider area. As usual, our bags quickly filled up with litter. There were cigarettes, candy wrappers, beverage cans, and a great variety of other transgressions against nature. Most surprising to us though, is that much of the pollution this time appeared to have been caused by very few people. We found ripped up pieces of what appeared to once be part of the same whole scattered all over, as well as many plastic, pink circles we suspect share the same source. Many of us tend to underestimate how much of an impact we, as individuals, can have. That goes for both polluting the Earth and for cleaning it.
We picked up piece after piece of trash until time beckoned us our separate ways. However, trash is sure to accrue here again. Then our paths will surely cross here again, perchance guided under the auspices of the same amicable destiny that brought us all here that day.
Reported by: Raymond Hu
Participants:
1.5 hours : Amy Xu, Kevin Xu, Raymond Hu, Grace Hu, Clara Wang, Albert He, Mathew Ding, Lucy Liu, Jason Liu, Xiaowen Kang, Vivian Sun, Austin Ing, Dylan Ing
0.5 hour: Dalina Cao
