Tears of Plastic

Jennifer Mateo Ramos

It was January 6th of a year that became my last one as a child. It was going to be the last time I would receive gifts from my aunts, uncles, and other close relatives on “El Día de Reyes” (Three Kings Day); a day which meant joy, tradition, and enchanting memories in my childhood, a time when I believed that “los tres reyes” (the three kings) were living characters. This holiday meant a connection to a magical world which brought me thrill and presents. I was sixteen years old, and celebrating the usual “Día de Reyes” family gathering at my house. Everyone was having a good time. I remember getting lots of presents (clothes, table games, jewelry, and money), all inside dazzling gift bags, and colorful wrapping paper. The day was filled with excitement, and also with paper and plastic bags used to package, transport, and collect all the garbage after the gathering. So paper and plastic bags ended up everywhere: on the couch, on the floor, on the kitchen cabinet, in the garage, in my parent’s room, and in my bedroom. Nobody cared how many there were, not even me. I thought they were being used for a reasonable cause.

It didn’t occur to me that the paper and plastic bags we used were a menace for any kind of animal (including human beings) or to the entire natural environment. In a few years we may be living in a world surrounded by plastic trash. I hope that instead of using paper and plastic materials so excessively, we just use them only when they’re needed, and this doesn’t include gift wrapping. For instance, I have a cousin who has a colostomy; she uses an Ostomy Pouching System (also called a colostomy bag). Plastic is used to make these devices, but it is a biological need for her, she cannot stop using them. However, plastic bags are not really needed to collect trash, or other objects, other options such as biodegradable bags and cloth bags are healthier for the environment, and for us.

I try to recycle the paper and plastic that I receive in gifts, or in other stuff, and I try not to purchase many products that use them. I cannot stop certain establishments’ employees from giving me plastic bags, and they get kind neurotic if I reject using them, but I still do my part.

I have become aware of nature's pain, the prolonged contamination in its seas, creatures, and forests. My dog, Flora, is a victim of our constant use of paper and plastic bags. She finds them in my house’s backyard, and buried in the ground, and she enjoys swallowing them. My enchanting Barrio Nuevo is also a victim of plastic and paper materials, which have become the unnatural but frequent decoration in its roads, trees, and rivers. My pledge to nature is not to cause it another tear by using plastic and paper bags unnecessarily.

I wonder how it can be possible that in a beautiful tradition such as “El Día de Reyes” plastic bags are so prominent. It is interesting that a tradition that brings so much joy to many people also brings nature so many tears, caused by peoples’ obsession to use non biodegradable material in this celebration. The next time I attend another family gathering, even if it is not “El Día de Reyes,” I will make others aware of the harm plastic and paper bags cause; let others know that as a result of their ignorance, that they are “a cuchillito de palo” (with a miniature wooden knife) slowly killing our natural environment. Hence, it is sad that we have come to this, celebrating on nature’s behalf (celebrando a costillas de la naturaleza), no matter what the consequences.