For many months now I have become more and more disturbed at the increasing amount of trash and garbage that is being dumped and discarded along the back roads of Monroe County. Since my early childhood I have retreated to the cool clean woods, when the burdens of our society began to press too heavy on my shoulders. Deep in the arms of Nature I can rest and think: there my wounds will heal; and soon I’m refreshed ready to go to face the problems of life again.
I think that it is intended for man to return to the healing arms of Nature, just as a small child returns to the arms of its mother when it is hurt or saddened. I’m sure that this is the reason the early Indians called the deep pine forests of this area, “The Healing Place.” They believed that the earth was the mother to all things. This is true, though primitive as is may seem. That is why our lives and well being depend so much upon the land around us.
The early inhabitants were aware of the necessity of keeping the land clean. They knew that they were breaking the laws of Nature when they threw trash and filth to the found winds. They knew better than we know now that man could push himself literally off the face of the earth.
In the spring of 1759 a young Indian chief stood on the banks of the Alabama River and addressed his people. He prophesied of the things to come and warned them of the threat that would spread across the land. Here are some of his words.
“Young men and warriors! Do not disregard the Master of Life. The sky is blue, the sun is without spots, the weather is fair, the ground is white, everything is quiet on the face of the earth and the blood of man ought not to be spilt on it. We must beg the Great Spirit to preserve it pure and spotless among the peoples that surround us.
The Great Spirit once blessed us with a magnificent river, abounding in fish, with delicious and cool fountains gushing out from the foot of the hills, with rich lands that produced without cultivation, and with vast forests, abounding with game of every description. But the whole scene is changing. The country is no longer half so beautiful. The waters of our beautiful river begin to discolor. The forests are being cut down. Deer bound not over the plains. The great bear has ceased to find its way through the deep swamps. The cunning panther does not spring upon its prey. Wolves have ceased to howl upon the hills. Birds cannot be seen in the branches of the trees. Graceful warriors guide no more their well-shaped canoes across the crystal clear waters of our river. Our beautiful maidens loiter not upon the plain nor pick the wild delicious berries.”
How frightening it is to think of the time when there will be no more green woods to wander in. When along each path one will find only the trash and garbage of our civilization, instead of the wild and beautiful trees and flowers that once were so plentiful. Instead of the fresh sweet smell of the woods in bloom, one will only encounter the stale sour odor of decaying garbage.
How pitiful it will be when the sounds of nature will have been stilled and all that will remain will be the growls of the scavengers and the buzz of the flies as they battle for the remains and scraps that litter our land. When as far as the eye can see will be nothing more than piles of junk.
This may sound far-fetched to the readers of this article, but I say in truth, that this is nearer than we realize. Few places can be found anymore where the trash from our “Good Life” can’t be seen to scar and disfigure the land before us.
Must we be buried in our own filth or will we awaken in time to stop the deadly menace that is slowly creeping across our land? This answer must come from you and I – only time will tell.
[This “Photostory” also included six photos taken by Singleton that carried the following captions: The Parker’s Eddy Road along Limestone Creek, once a scenic nature trail, is now strewn with trash and garbage (Photo 1). Another nature spot off a county road near Monroeville also has been littered with trash (Photo 2). Trash and debris have marred the beauty of this Monroe County scenic road (Photo 3). This illegal dumping site lies about 20 feet off the Old Salem Road in Mexia (Photo 4). The side of this woodlands road seems to have become a regular dumping spot for thoughtless litterbugs (Photo 5). Discarded furniture and other debris make for the ghastly appearance of this scenic road near Limestone Creek (Photo 6).]
(Singleton, the author of the 1991 book “Of Foxfire and Phantom Soldiers,” passed away at the age of 79 on July 19, 2007. A longtime resident of Monroeville, he was born to Vincent William Singleton and Frances Cornelia Faile Singleton, during a late-night thunderstorm, on Dec. 14, 1927 in Marengo County, graduated from Sweet Water High School in 1946, served as a U.S. Marine paratrooper in the Korean War, worked as a riverboat deckhand, lived for a time among Apache Indians, moved to Monroe County on June 28, 1964 and served as the administrator of the Monroeville National Guard unit from June 28, 1964 to Dec. 14, 1987. He was promoted from the enlisted ranks to warrant officer in May 1972. For years, Singleton’s columns, titled “Monroe County history – Did you know?” and “Somewhere in Time” appeared in The Monroe Journal, and he wrote a lengthy series of articles about Monroe County that appeared in Alabama Life magazine. It’s believed that his first column appeared in the March 25, 1971 edition of The Monroe Journal. He is buried in Pineville Cemetery in Monroeville. The column above and all of Singleton’s other columns are available to the public through the microfilm records at the Monroe County Public Library in Monroeville. Singleton’s columns are presented here each week for research and scholarship purposes and as part of an effort to keep his work and memory alive.)
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