I walked outside on one of the first days of the self-isolation and the birds were chirping up a storm. I always notice their songs when I go outside, but on this day they sounded louder than ever. Then it dawned on me. They are happy because humans aren’t impeding on their nature like it normally does. Fewer people are outside and fewer people are driving. Mother Earth is smiling.
There are reports from around the world of nature improving due to COVID-19’s effects on humanity. Let’s travel to Italy for instance. The canals in Venice on an average day are filled with people and boats moving up and down the canals. Since the stay-at-home order, the canals are empty of boats but this is opening up room for dolphins and swans to come. The once murky, constantly churned water has calmed and for the first time is clear. It is not healed, but with time in this situation, it will begin to heal and could continue if things remain the same.
Move on to India and for the first time in decades, Indians in the state of Punjab are saying that nature is healing before their very eyes as they can now clearly see the Himalayan mountains that are normally hidden from the smog created from the pollution of factories and vehicles. In recent times, the only moments you could catch a glimpse of the peaks were after rainfall which cleared some of the pollution temporarily.
Seismologists around the globe are reporting a quieter, calmer Earth as the vibrations are calming down. This is believed to be a direct response to fewer vehicles on the ground which causes vibrations of their own. There is also a reduction in noise which allows seismologists to hear the Earth’s energy clearer.
South Florida beaches and oceans are showing signs of improvement from the beach shutdowns. No humans means no trash and no pollution and that is allowing the ocean to heal itself and the fish within it to heal as well. There are reports of clearer water and cleaner beaches. I live in South Florida and whenever my husband and I take out our jetski, I see the clean-up company 4Ocean bins at the marina and they are always filled with trash and plastic that the boats have collected on their trips. It always makes me so sad and angry to see how some people are so disrespectful.
4Ocean is a company that was founded by two surfers who grew up on the Florida coast and spent their free time swimming, diving, fishing, and surfing. After becoming friends in college, they saved up their money for the surf trip of a lifetime to Bali. To their shock, when they arrived, they found a beach that was completely covered in plastic and each wave was filled with trash that delivered more garbage with each break. It was then that they vowed to open their company to help clean up the oceans of the world. If you want to donate to their conservation efforts go to www.4ocean.com
Global warming has been a hot button topic for years. Scientists will surely be studying the effects of this global lockdown on the environment and nature. It is pretty apparent what they will find. This leaves us as a society to ask ourselves how we can work together to keep improving the planet instead of destroying it. Each of us can make a difference if we are mindful and respectful.
Staying at home is causing a BIG reduction in pollution from cars and from planes. This is good for the environment, for the animals and for the air quality. Sure, once we get back out into a somewhat normal society working again, things will return back to normal, but I really hope that a lesson can be learned and remembered from all of this sacrifice.
Try to spend more quality time at home with your loved ones. Cut down on unnecessary driving to help with pollution. Be mindful of nature and its animals surrounding you when you walk outside and remember that the outdoor environment is their world. We are just visiting it. Together we can make a difficult, frustrating and scary moment in our lives a positive thing to improve our world.
