Earth is our only home. How can we save it? | 1 Nikhita Makam | 2 Shiva Ahmadi | 3 Asmaa Jada |

“The Earth has music for those who listen.”

Truly, once you start to listen and really heed the symphony of sounds around you, you’ll hear the orchestra of Earth. You would hear wind whistling in merry tunes, you would hear the river gushing over pebbles, gurgling like a singer tuning her voice, you would hear the butterflies and bees fluttering from one bloom to another, like a skilled pianist’s hand from one key to another. If we paid closer attention, we would hear the mellifluous music that nature has to offer. Alas, the sounds that pierce our eardrums are sirens, wails, horns, screams and cacophonous city noises. The Earth has so much to offer but as humans, we are mercenaries who only see the teak in trees but not the nests of the birds in it’s branches. It is time we start acknowledging that we are responsible for the state that the Earth is at right now.

Not much is known about our universe and the galaxies around us but we do know that there are trillions of planets out there. No matter how many men walk on the Moon and how many rovers land on Mars, there is only one planet in the entire universe that we can call ‘home’, and that is our planet Earth. We are answerable to the future generations as to why the air is so polluted, why the water is so contaminated and why the land is so arid. We do not inherit nature from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children. We must take care of the Earth if human life must continue to survive.

Chemicals are in use everywhere, from fertilizers to dish soaps. These chemicals are released into water along with untreated effluents and garbage. These chemicals contaminate the sacred seas and oceans, tainting the purity of water. Oil spills, untreated effluents, sewage spills. Why is it that these are common news headlines? Why is it that we are accustomed to hearing such dreadful deeds? Above all, why is it that none of us are responsive? The Earth is called the blue planet for an obvious reason. The liquid that brought the Earth that name is the same liquid that makes up 75% of our body. It is also the pollution of this liquid that is the leading worldwide cause of death and disease. This is why water pollution is such a huge problem.

The majority of the Earth’s surface is water and that should be our first target. We should stop polluting water and use the water we have wisely. Simple acts like rain-water harvesting, water conservation, mindful usage of water resources and not wasting water can actually go a long way. Start minimizing the chemicals you use in your daily life and though these attempts seem trivially futile, it will help. After all, little drops of water and little grains of sand make the mighty ocean and the pleasant land.

This essay is written by Nikhita MaKam.

Aroster @2019 India. Future writers of the Earth.