Awareness and Responsibilities

Today, during my morning run up the final hill to my house, I watched a teenager ahead moving up the hill texting. She missed the mockingbird's trill, an Anna's hummingbird that buzzed near her head, and the scents of spring blooming around her.

As her feet shuffled past lizards in charcoal coats doing pushups in the sun, she turned and walked down the hill.  When we passed,  I extended a smile but her gaze returned to texting.

I wanted to stop her and point out the details of a world she missed.

The day before a young man walked toward me in the same spot and flicked his cigarette into the dry grass.  He moved on. By the time I reached the cigarette he had returned to retrieve it.  

"Fires start easily," I said, not wanting to turn it into a "you idiot" situation.  He took a deep inhale and kept on moving.

I notice trash growing from bushes and wonder at the reason so many think the sidewalk is their disposal unit. What will it take to convince young people we shave a need for the benefits of nature?

We share a planet that deserves our awareness and nurture.  Why do so many miss nature's show?

Creative Write:  How would you teach nature awareness to a young person?