What a Clean Boston Harbor Means To Me

I remember, just when I had moved to the town I live in now, I went on a trip into the Harbor with some family friends. I remember the boat, with its white paint and sails. I remember the bag of grapes sitting in my lap. I remember the weather, clear, blue sky and perfectly warm. But mostly I remember the water. It shined like a mix of sapphires and emeralds. It was cool, but not cold. It was beautiful. As the day went on, my family explored the many islands and islets in the harbor. I noticed that everywhere I went, there was life. Birds, fish, squirrels and other creatures, each unique in their own special way, lived freely in the harbor. This was their home and we had the responsibility of deciding if we could keep it clean or not. “All good things are difficult to achieve; and bad things are very easy to get,” says Confucius, a famous Chinese philosopher. I have come to learn that this is very true this year in school. Just like getting good grades is harder than getting bad grades, making the harbor a place of life and beauty is harder than selfishly polluting it.

A clean Boston Harbor gives me a lot of pride. It shows that our city is resourceful and that we care about making our harbor a hub of natural beauty. It shows that humanity can rebound from our mistakes. Before 2000, our harbor was one of the most polluted in the entire USA, compared to now it being one of the cleanest. It shows that our city will not take the easy path that we will put in the effort for a beautiful harbor. Before we were dumping waste into the harbor, but now we are turning it into things that help the environment. It gives me hope that humanity can rebound from our mistakes regarding climate change. Cleaning, and keeping the harbor clean saves many animal lives, and keeps our planet’s beauty alive. So when you see the harbor, remember we are not alone on this planet. We are only one of the creatures that calls this planet home and we have to do our best to protect it.