So I could not have asked for a better day to visit my reflection spot. The sun was shining, the weather warm- for lack of a better word the stream looked “happy”. It was so nice out in fact that I decided to go for a swim, unintentionally of course. Inspired by the weather, instead of sitting in one spot and reflecting I decided to be a little bit more adventurous.
Jumping from rock to rock (yes I did slip and fall in at one point) a reached a point that was difficult to cross. Bracing myself on a tree, I suddenly realized I was holding on to what felt like a small group of thin hairs. For those of you who don’t already know, I have recently suffered a severe allergic reaction to poison ivy. While on the most recent Earth Lodge camping trip to Flattop Mountain, I woke up one morning with my left eye swollen shut. So naturally, when I felt these thin hairs indicative of poison ivy, my heart skipped a beat. However, my immediate second thought was, “Ahh it’s already bad enough and I’m on meds- how much worse can it get?” so I carried on. Peering upstream, I noticed that the riffles seemed to go on endlessly. So I decided that today I would see how far up I could go. Along the way I made several observations about the stream, now informed with a wealth of Earth Lodge knowledge I lacked the last time I visited this site.
The first thing I noticed was how much this creek was a classic riparian zone. With a bank sloping down from private property on one side and a collection of rocks, sand, and trees on the other, I could not help but think about how this stream must experience the phenomena that we’ve discussed in class. By gravity alone the storm water runoff coming down from the private homes above empties into the stream. With its banks relatively well kept, likely as a result of the “Community Stream Project” of 2006 that I mentioned in my first reflection spot blog, I imagine that this zone acts as an effective filter for substances such as nitrogen. I cannot back up this claim with actual data as the nitrate test I used last semester for Ecology was not specific enough, but I did measure the lowest levels of fecal coliform bacteria at this site of any that I tested, so maybe that is saying something. Looking out from the stream’s bank in different direction I saw another sign of urbanization- the University of Richmond Robin’s Basketball Stadium. I couldn’t help but wonder what effect we as a university have on this small creek, even if it is somewhat hidden from the view of the average U of R student walking to and from the gym. Finally, the last pieces of information from class that I noticed manifesting itself at the creek were the species of trees and plants along its banks. I’ve already mentioned the poison ivy, but I also found several river birch, sycamore, and tulip poplar trees, along with more than a couple wild grape vines.
Before leaving there was one last thing I had to do. Along the stream I had noticed a gradual buildup of trash. Plastic bottles, beer cans, children’s toys- you name it, and it was there. Cursing myself under my breath for forgetting to bring a garbage bag (and trying not to think about how disappointed my roommate would be- see his inspiring GMT trash clean-up blog here: http://blog.richmond.edu/james/2012/01/26/my-special-place/) I gathered up all of the junk I could fit in my arms. After depositing the trash in one of the cans of the first house along the stream, I turned back to take one more look at the creek. Stunned that I missed it before, a bright pink ball floating in the water suddenly caught my eye. As I trekked back down to the water’s edge and got a closer look I saw that the ball said, “MEGHAN”. Now to me this was a lose-lose situation. This poor girl Meghan lost her ball, and this poor stream has now become its unthankful home. Without any more thought I grabbed the ball and started on my way back to campus, hoping that I’d run into a Meghan along the way. In X lot I passed by a family of three including a mother, a little boy in a stroller, and a beautiful little blonde girl. I couldn’t help but ask the mother, somewhat awkwardly I must admit, “Is her name Meghan by any chance?”
“No, I’m sorry it’s not”
“Oh, well do you think she would like this ball anyway? It says Meghan but I guess you can always cross that out”
“Yeah sure thanks! And her name is Camille by the way.”
Ok so it wasn’t Meghan, but in my mind Camille is close enough. As I walked back to Lakeview I began to think more about the relationships we have with our waterways. About how I never realized how important riparian zones are to water quality. About how many lose-lose situations there are when it comes to our streams, lakes, and rivers. Yet, as corny as it sounds, I realized that there is hope. Just as this class as done for me, I thought about how increased education and awareness about how we affect our waterways and how our waterways effect us can inspire true change. So, although this will be my last official “reflection spot” visit to this stream, I know that I will carry with me the lessons I’ve learned along its banks. And hopefully one day when I get back from abroad I can revisit it (and remember a bag) to see it still shining as what I find to be one of the most beautiful, natural places around our campus.
