This weeks blog post is from Molly H., a Gobblers alumni! She writes about how her love of trees led her to want to become an environmental scientist.
Molly H.
If I were to use one word to describe me, it would be “tree-hugger”. I think my obsession with saving trees stemmed from appreciating all the trees I have in my yard. I come from suburbia, so I took great pride in the variety and number of trees in my neighborhood, which is hard to find in most developments nowadays. This made it extremely hard to cope with a tree that had to be taken down. The cutting of one of my backyard trees felt as bad as the death of a pet. Even if the dead tree threatened to fall on the house, I couldn’t bear to watch it go. Chopping down 1 tree was as bad as clearing 100 acres of the Amazon in my mind. I would cry every time the landscapers came with their machines. Over the years, we have had to take down 6 trees, which is a lot for an acre plot. We have only planted 4. Granted, all these trees were dead and it wasn’t our fault, but I still sulked over their death.
My street is lined with oaks and maples, providing a grand entrance
Thus started the mentality that my family is single handedly killing the planet because of the absence of two trees. Those two trees provided oxygen to 200 people who now died of asphyxiation thanks to us. A songbird species went extinct because of their absence. This irrational thinking has gotten me into arguments with my parents, but it was really the start of my wanting to becom an environmental scientist. I have to save the planet when I’m older because we almost killed it by cutting down those trees. I have to make up for what we did. By now I have probably forgone enough paper towels in public bathrooms to save two trees, but save more I will.
I always take a picture of the tree before it is taken down. This tree was beautifully centered outside of our bay window.
I have to say, the slogan “little trees need hugs too” that I learned at WLA didn’t sit well with me at first. Why are we chopping down perfectly good trees just so new ones can grow back? But, I did concede a little bit of my tree appreciation for the preservation of habitats. Nonetheless, I’m content with my irrational mindset. If I always believe I’m killing the planet, then there’s nothing I can do except save it.
My Trees
Posted: October 9, 2018 by Nina Walk
This weeks blog post is from Molly H., a Gobblers alumni! She writes about how her love of trees led her to want to become an environmental scientist.
If I were to use one word to describe me, it would be “tree-hugger”. I think my obsession with saving trees stemmed from appreciating all the trees I have in my yard. I come from suburbia, so I took great pride in the variety and number of trees in my neighborhood, which is hard to find in most developments nowadays. This made it extremely hard to cope with a tree that had to be taken down. The cutting of one of my backyard trees felt as bad as the death of a pet. Even if the dead tree threatened to fall on the house, I couldn’t bear to watch it go. Chopping down 1 tree was as bad as clearing 100 acres of the Amazon in my mind. I would cry every time the landscapers came with their machines. Over the years, we have had to take down 6 trees, which is a lot for an acre plot. We have only planted 4. Granted, all these trees were dead and it wasn’t our fault, but I still sulked over their death.
Thus started the mentality that my family is single handedly killing the planet because of the absence of two trees. Those two trees provided oxygen to 200 people who now died of asphyxiation thanks to us. A songbird species went extinct because of their absence. This irrational thinking has gotten me into arguments with my parents, but it was really the start of my wanting to becom an environmental scientist. I have to save the planet when I’m older because we almost killed it by cutting down those trees. I have to make up for what we did. By now I have probably forgone enough paper towels in public bathrooms to save two trees, but save more I will.
I have to say, the slogan “little trees need hugs too” that I learned at WLA didn’t sit well with me at first. Why are we chopping down perfectly good trees just so new ones can grow back? But, I did concede a little bit of my tree appreciation for the preservation of habitats. Nonetheless, I’m content with my irrational mindset. If I always believe I’m killing the planet, then there’s nothing I can do except save it.
Cover photo credit to Mihis Alex from Pexels
Category: Youth Blog Tags: environment, Gobblers, habitat, outdoors, trees