This land is your land, this land is our land...

I live in a very pretty part of Ontario, one that’s rife with history and charm. I was born and raised here; have lived in and around these parts for the majority of my life, and one of the things I love the most is the scenery. This area is beautiful, from lush gardens, winding trails and sprawling parks to historic buildings and landmarks. There’s a lot to do around here, and there’s lots to see, too.

And lately, all I see is garbage.

I cannot get over the amount of litter that I see when I am out and about. Everywhere I look I see a chip bag here, a Tim Horton’s cup there. Garbage strewn along the side of the road; a cigarette butt every thirty paces. I scan the playground before I let my kids have at it and almost always end up picking up someone’s discarded water bottle or an empty Freezie sleeve. There’s been a couch sitting behind a building at the top of my street for months and a few weeks ago, while driving along the highway, I caught sight of a huge pile of junk that had been dumped at the mouth of one of the many walking trails in my town.

That huge pile of junk is still sitting there. 

And it – discarded litter, couches and piles of junk – drives me crazy. It’s ugly, it’s unsightly, and it’s entirely preventable. Yeah, getting rid of household junk and unwanted furniture is a pain in the ass, but it’s doable. People seem to have forgotten that we all live here together on this great, green earth, and that it’s up to us to keep it clean. Seeing such blatant disregard for our environment and our communities really makes me angry. I mean, is it really too much for people to be responsible for their own garbage, and throw it away properly?

Apparently it is – at least it seems to be in this area, anyway.

 Look, if you’ve got crap to get rid of, there are a lot of options out there for you. For starters, look up your local waste disposal company and find out about their residential pickup service. Find out if organizations in your area have pickup programs (like, for example, The Canadian Diabetes Association) or Google junk removal Canada and see what comes up. Check out 1-800 Got Junk? or donate to Goodwill, the Salvation Army or other local thrift stores. If it’s furniture you no longer want, ask around to see if anyone could use an extra couch or table. Throw an impromptu yard sale or put an ad on Freecycle – because, as they say, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure.

Just please, for the love of Mother Earth, don’t dump your junk outdoors somewhere. You owe it to yourself – and everyone else – to act more responsibly. To quote a well-known folk song, this land is your land, this land is my land...this land was made for you and me. Let’s try to put a little more thought in to how we treat this land, okay?

:::This is an original Canada Moms Blog post. Mamatulip blogs her life at Where am I going...and why am I in this handbasket?:::

Photo used with thanks to Alan Stanton