Occupying land with due care

Living light on the land is good for the spirit and for nature. The water birds usually share their domains without complaint, retreating shily when human visitors wander near or invade. It may be too hard for some of the landed gentry of today’s ilk to welcome the landless, hopeless and forlorn to share the hill, the dale, the picnic spot by the water.

And yet the land is home to all that live. It comforts, shelters, inspires, it should not be out of reach for any soul sunk in the city. Using pretty pieces of land in such a way that it invites the next generation is the ideal stewardship way of “owning” any land. In other words, looking after the piece of natural veld close to your house is a more laudable goal than caring for the money in your bank. The former should be receiving some of the TLC, the tender loving care that is bestowed so lavishly on the latter.

The scientist choosing unobtrusive measures for studying delicate subjects in nature is as good as the author who reminds of the lesser gods in this world, the ones looking after the little things in life, often forgotten but precious. The reminder that pesticides kill birdsong is consistent with city fathers saving green strips, suburban streamlets from becoming concrete canals and allowing citizens to plant in the dead spots near their houses. We're all in this together.