Spring has finally sprung upon us here in Detroit. I couldn’t be more grateful! The frigid winter left me daydreaming about seasonal change, crisp morning air, and the sun warming the earth. Seasonal change is what I love about the Midwest. Seasons aren’t the only thing that change, people do too. The Midwestern spirit and charm changes with the seasons as well. From Indiana to Michigan, the attitudes and demeanors of those who live in both places are almost identical. On the one hand, people are cranky in the winter and softer and kindhearted when temperatures are ideal. A new spirit is unleashed beginning with the first days of spring…I like to call it a spring renaissance!
Thankfully the warmer temperatures have melted the snow and ice, washed away the stock piles of salt throughout the streets of the city, and brought some life back to downtown. Believe it or not, the frigid temps led people to stay at home. I’m one of those people!
The snow actually did us all a favor. It coveted the streets with beautiful white, glistening snow. It created warmer temperatures before we were struck with piercing temperatures after it left. Since it is gone for another year we are left with collections of trash throughout the city. My first realization of this overwhelming collection of unwanted things came to me during the St. Patrick’s Day parade. First, I couldn’t believe how many people had come downtown to enjoy the parade in our beloved Corktown. That part I liked. The second thought I had was about the disposable trash that was littered throughout the streets. Honestly, it made me sad. Who was going to clean it all up? Certainly not those who haphazardly put it there in the first place!
Living in Detroit and being able to call it home are important to me. Let’s forget the part about me being an ambassador for the city. Forget the part where I tell you how great Detroit is, the fact that Detroit is getting better, or blaming those who don’t live here for the garbage that lines our city streets. Some of those things are true and one of those things is a rather skewed view of reality. The truth is: we all add to the problem, let’s be the solution together!
We have a responsibility. Each of us has a responsibility to take care of our communities whether they have public services to supplement the good samaritans who live there or not. Visitors, residents, passersby and the street dwellers who view the streets as their home deserve a clean view. Treat our communities and the earth with respect. The earth and those who live here will thank you.
That completes my public service announcement.