How We Use And Transform Nature As A Source For Different Purposes
In her article “Thirteen ways of Seeing Nature in LA, ” Jenny Price describes how nature in LA can be seen in different ways. Just like any other nature writer, Price has been to different places with beautiful nature like Missoula and Boulder. In the article, she explains how other nature writers find L. A to lack nature. Regardless of the buildings, there’s still a lot of nature in L. A. Price claims that all of our daily used items like for example, computers, phones, TVs, radios, clothes, were originally from natural resources. She also explains how some of these items like “the mango whip”, were transformed from their natural forms to something artificial.
Price described nature in L. A to be full of transformed natural resources, likewise, Lynnwood, specifically Maple Road, has a very nice flora with beautiful views of mountains but is also filled with buildings and other transformed natural resources. By studying nature in Maple Road, we can see how we use and transform nature as a source of food, medicinal purposes, comfort, construction plans, means of transportation, and energy (solar and renewable) to sustain our daily lives. There are a lot of things to observe in Maple road that can also be related to Price’s article. From the study, Maple Road is surrounded by different kinds of animals like squirrels, crows, geese, rabbits and many more. Not only is it surrounded by a lot of animals, it has a very nice flora such as roses, lilies, blue dicks, dahilas, and it is also full of maple trees hence the name “Maple Road”. Nature provides animals and plants which serve as a source of food and are used for medicinal purposes to help maintain and prolong our lives.
While I was studying Maple road, I saw little yellow-headed plants called Dandelions, growing almost everywhere. They grow mostly in the lawns, and we know them as the stubborn weed that never seems to leave our lawn or garden. These Dandelions are actually medicinal plants that are capable of treating minor health problems like loss of appetite, upset stomachs, joint pains, bruises and etc. Another example of a plant we use for medicinal purposes is the Blackberry. This plant outnumbers the Dandelions on Maple Road. The Blackberry’s leaf, root and fruit is used to make medicine. It is able of treating common sicknesses like diarrhea, pain and swelling. Animals also use the plants as a source of food and medicinal purposes. They cure themselves by eating plants that are suitable for their well-being. Maple Road is known for its rabbit invasion. They are so abundant that it’s a common food to eat. Squirrels can also be found almost everywhere and in a way, I think they are of big help to us, by the way they collect nuts and seeds and sometimes burry those seeds, which sprout in trees and we, humans, collect its fruits and consume them. Nature as a whole gives us a lot, not only does it provide us peace and comfort, it also provides us resources to sustain our lives. For example, cars, buses, and other types of transportations we use are all are derived from nature, as they are mostly made of metals, which are a natural resource. This opportunity (means of transportation), serves as comfort or leisure. The fact that we get the chance to migrate without any difficulties like the way it was in the hunters/gatherers’ era, where they travel by sled, and sometimes by walking, is without a doubt a great relief. Without nature surrounding the lives of people, there would be no opportunity to gather metallic substances to build these means of transportation. Nature also provides us inner peace by the views it has to offer like for example, the Mount Rainier, the hummingbirds, the fresh air that blows through your hair, clothes and that blows on your face on a hot sunny day brings nothing but a cool relief and many more. In the absence of these, there would be nothing to admire and appreciate when stressed.
The next things I observed in Maple Road were the buildings and the roads. After examining the materials used to construct these buildings and roads, the main substance that was used is cement which is derived from a mix of some chemical products and sand. Iron bars and wood, which come from trees, is also used. Some of the well-known buildings in Maple road are Target, Best Buy, Costco Whole Sale, and Macy’s. Some of these buildings are malls and malls as we know, are the headquarters of transformed materials. Let’s take for example, Costco Whole Sale. As its name implies, it has almost everything from A to Z. It’s a huge building and just by looking at it, you can tell that it took a lot of time and huge amounts of clay, rocks, lumber, metal and concrete to build it. Our homes and buildings are powered by electrical energy that we get from renewable energy or solar energy. Most renewable energy comes directly and sometimes indirectly from the Sun. Most of our daily life materials are mechanized by electricity generated from sunlight. Solar energy can be used for heating, lighting our homes, hot water heating and generating electricity. With heating, we get the warmth we need in our homes during the cold weather. Having light in our homes and in other buildings is an advantage especially at night when we need it the most.
A thing observed in the community of Maple Road is that people stay up at night in their homes doing things for example, it may be cooking, typing up an important piece of information that is required to be done in a short period of time, researching a material on the internet and many more. The point is that we would not have the opportunity to do such things if nature didn’t provide this natural energy that we are transforming into electricity.
