Environment

Happy belated birthday, Earth!

Recently, I had the privilege of snorkelling in the aquamarine waters of Roatán, a small island off the coast of Honduras. My family and I went on a day trip to a very small cay, off the southeast coast of the island. We found a pristine reef with gem-coloured schooling fish, lurking sharks, and healthy, large coral formations.

Paradise Lost

Like so many tropical islands world-wide, tourism is the major industry in Roatán. While being a boon to the local economy, tourists in large numbers obviously also have a negative effect on the environment.

The other night, I was walking out of my garage into our back lane, when I ran into my neighbour, coming out of his garage.

I had Lark in the carrier, as I often do.

“I didn’t know you guys walked”, he said, joking.

“Sorry?” I said, startled. Unable to hide my defensive tone, I said, “Only every day.”

He quickly changed the subject and we parted amicably. But I was, shall we say, nettled. As happens so often when we have an emotional reaction to something, I couldn’t quite figure out why I was so irritated.