By ROSIE STARR

We chose this area to build our home. The natural beauty of the woodlands and river environment brings peace and enjoyment to our lives. While observing seasonal changes throughout the year, we have learned that there is a need to respect, protect and preserve this precious and fragile habitat. When Hurricane Ivan stormed through the valley, the creeks and river spilled over the banks. Many trees uprooted and soil just washed away. I feel that there is a need to educate ourselves on ways to practice conservation. It’s important to be mindful of our impact on the environment that surrounds our homes and community. For instance, when gardening and landscaping, we should choose non-toxic materials that might add poisons to the soil that drains into the waterways.

It is time to think about our environment in terms of our senses. Sight and sound for instance. Many of us know the striking beauty of watching eagles fish their food. When we stop to listen, there is always a variety of bird song. If we fill our lives with unnecessary noise, we can’t hear this rare natural sound. Let’s begin to make a conscious choice. A thumping sound system from a vehicle will drown out that lovely chirp from the crickets and frogs. We don’t need another noisy recreational site. The constantly growing supply of intense artificial light is an eyesore. Let’s think hard and make the right choices when zoning for Damascus. Do we need a strip mall with intrusive traffic and brackish architecture? Let us put some planning effort into researching clean and quiet service industries. We need people that appreciate a star-filled sky observing the Milky Way on a warm summer night and folks that welcome the sound of rippling water.

There are many lovely people that live in the Delaware River Valley. This area has a wealth of creative and sensitive citizens. It would be great to continue to focus on a community of support for each other. The idea of a growing network is beneficial on many levels. Folks keeping in touch by email or phone calls help keep neighbors communicating and sharing ideas. It is important to care for one another. It strengthens and preserves our democracy.

If there is a single thought that I would like to share it is this:

We need to create a peaceful world. Each of us can do this, in our homes and at our places of work. Let us be mindful of our place on this planet. Let’s be aware of our impact on each other and our environment. Let us respect and protect; observe and preserve the beauty around us and enjoy it all together.

[Rosie Starr earns her living as a radio broadcast engineer. She finds great pleasure observing the many aspects of natural beauty and treasures time in the Delaware River Valley with her husband.]