I Took a Walk and Haven't Been the Same Since

A meditative reflection on the environment, animals, and change.

I took a walk just outside of my neighborhood earlier. When it’s quieter, it can be peaceful and meditative. But there are things that tug at my mind, breaking that peace.

I couldn’t help but notice the trash. In the trees, the creek, the roadside. Trash, everywhere. At some point, I had the distressing but humorous thought: “Why is there nature around my trash?”

That’s really what it feels like we’ve arrived at. A weird mix of existential dread while basking in the beautiful, yet concerningly hot weather.

All I could think about was how relentless consumption and disregard for the environment have come full circle. This is something I’m a part of, and so are you. We’ve been warned for decades, yet still, some don’t care.

It’s hard to care. It takes effort, knowledge, and wisdom. But everything is on the line.

What will life be if we’re stuck indoors, unable to explore, connect, thrive? Biodiversity, a sustainable climate, the magic of nature. These things are woven into the fabric of life itself. If we’re trapped inside while the world withers away due to a self-perpetuating system, can we even call it life?

This is not living. This is slowly dying. And we’re the “lucky” ones, dying slow while everything around us dies fast. We are living in mass extinction.

I haven’t taken this seriously enough, but now my mission is to do what I can, to work with others and say, “Hey, at least we tried.” Maybe it will make all the difference. Maybe it will happen anyway. But why not give this earth a fighting chance? Because there are systems and people fighting for the exact opposite.

I watched a couple of beautiful documentaries this past week. One was Every Little Thing, about a woman who runs a hummingbird rehab program with a stunning sanctuary to heal and hopefully release them back into the wild.

A quote stuck with me: when she encounters self-interested or dishonest people, she sees it as reflective, not just of that one instance, but of our larger disregard for the beauty of wildlife.

That hit home. We share this world. We ought to be stewards, not just for ourselves but for all life. We have undeniable intellect and gifts that allow us to cooperate, but those should be harnessed for the benefit of the world, not its destruction.

In that sense, as human beings, we are not superior. Yet in our thoughts, feelings, and actions, we have built a world around that illusion. We’ve been gifted with magical brains, but with that comes responsibility, not disregard for everything but ourselves.

This is what I think about the trash. It is self-interest, lack of care, lack of connection, and a complete disregard for the earth. I’m a hypocrite. I’m not living the most sustainable lifestyle. But I care, so I try. And I will continue to. Shouldn’t we all?

It’s not just individuals. It’s systemic. The problems we see such as trash everywhere, worsening climate disasters, and stray animals are manifestations of our own actions. The system reflects how we are living.

I actually picked up a bag of trash on a walk last spring. It’s back. Probably more than before. But hey, there’s less than there would be if I hadn’t. Maybe it’s time to do it again.

In my little slice of life, right outside my neighborhood, I can either assume it’s futile or assume it’s an act of reverence. It may not change the entire world. But it changes my world, and it sends a message. It also has a ripple effect. So, in some way, it changes the world nonetheless.

Could you imagine if hundreds, thousands, millions took on this perspective? We could cooperate, consolidate healthy and accountable power, and become the stewards we are meant to be.

But the truth is, some people are not meant to be stewards. They hold a lot of power. But so do we. I say it’s time we reclaim our personal power.

Another quote from the hummingbird documentary stuck with me: “I try not to measure success by the outcome but by the amount of compassion that went into it.”

So beautiful. If we changed our measure of success, maybe we would all feel more successful with much less in life. Not less in terms of importance, but less materially.

We would measure success by compassion, love, joy, connection, and fulfillment. Not metrics such as material excess or status.

The next documentary I watched was Kedi, about stray cats in Istanbul. It highlighted systemic shortcomings but also how cats are woven into the culture, bringing joy and love to so many. A profound watch, I highly recommend.

One person in the film said you could see stray cats as a problem, but they are a reflection of our own struggles. If we learned to live with each other and the world again, to rekindle our joy for life, maybe the problem would cease to be a problem. Our values, ethos, and way of living would completely shift.

Another person said, “If you can’t love animals, you probably can’t love people either.” Felt that. My love for the world, both people and the environment, grew from my love for animals. It taught me what love really entails: responsibility, connection, care.

These quotes were so poignant and honestly the entire documentary carried those themes. Beautiful, kind souls expressing their perspectives in a unique light

Watching those cats was a joy. They are so beautiful, ethereal even. But there’s a backdrop of sadness. You notice the lack of sustenance, resources, and infrastructure destroying their way of life.

We saw the cats who found connections. But what about the ones who didn’t? The ones who wither away without a documentary to tell their story?

These are the realities of the world that aren’t as heartwarming. I think these documentaries serve an amazing purpose, to remind us that the earth, animals, and our fellow human beings are worth fighting for.

There is much beauty and divinity, where the struggle and pain is absolutely worth fighting for it.

These aren’t just documentaries, they are the essence of life itself and urge us to heal and evolve.

So, I took a walk, saw some trash, and haven’t been the same since. It may not seem like a big deal. But what we can learn from mindfully taking in the simple things tells us so much about the state of the world.

Hopefully, working together, we can live in a world where this is the exception, not the rule.

I don’t want to impose my ideas on others. Except to plead that nature is not our trash can. It is the bedrock for this divine life we are gifted to experience.

Try to care. See how much of a difference it could make. It’s time we stop underestimating our power.

As always, thanks for reading! If any part of this resonated with you, I’d love if you subscribed and stuck around 🙂

-Sain

(If you are interested in watching the documentaries I referenced, check out Kanopy. It’s a thoughtful streaming service and all you need is a library card or some sort of student account to sign up.)