Suicide Forest

Through many of our discussions in class, the idea of nature being a stress reliever has been brought up countless times. Any time this is discussed, I always think of a documentary I watched some years back about Aokigahara, otherwise known as the Suicide Forest on Mount Fuji in Japan. In this 14 square mile patch of forest, there have been hundreds of suicides since the early 1900's. Signs outside of the entrance of the forest warn those thinking about committing the act, such as, "Your life is a precious gift from your parents!" and "Please consult the police before you decide to die!". The signs do not often deter those who are determined to end their life, and they continue on into the forest. The scenery is stunning, with Mount Fuji overlooking the incredibly dense forest, and it is very easy to get lost due to the denseness of the trees. The forest itself is said to have an overall eerie feeling, and it is always suspiciously quiet. Also to add to the creepiness, personal belongings are strewn throughout the forest and stand oddly out of place among the beautiful scenery.

The Japanese argue that Aokigahara holds the souls of those who die there, and  those trapped souls can beckon people from far and wide to kill themselves within the grips of the dense forest. Once someone commits suicide in Aokigahara, their soul joins the rest and they continue to try and recruit more. All of this is considered to be folklore, but some really do believe in the myth. Despite the myths, most argue that the stress and high standards of Japanese culture are often too much to manage, so they enter into the "Most beautiful place to die". The history behind Aokigahara is haunting, and the idea of so many ending their lives in the forest is heart breaking.

Harking back to the idea of nature being a stress reliever, I personally believe in the idea and it has helped me in times when I have felt down or stressed. Although it appears that those who enter Aokigahara have one goal in mind, I am certain that there have been many who have entered and reemerged after decompressing through the forest. The calming sense of stillness in nature can switch your perception on life, and I highly encourage those who do have troubles dealing with stress to take a walk through nature. Life will always get better, but for some of those who enter Aokigahara they see no future ahead of them.

Smoker's Litter

I have always had a personal vendetta against cigarettes, with many of my friends being smokers, as well as losing my grandfather to bladder cancer (onset by smoking for 50+ years). Any time somebody lights up, I cannot believe that someone would want to waste their life smoking such a horrific substance. While I've known of the health effects for quite some time, I've been curious to what happens with the dreaded cigarette butt. What harm could such a little piece of paper, filter and tobacco (plus thousands of fillers and poisons) do to the environment? Well as it turns out, it is one of the most littered items in the world.

Tobacco litter represents "32% of all litter in outdoor recreation areas," according to a 2009 report by KAB Research, and "About 95% of cigarette filters are composed of cellulose acetate, a form of plastic which does not quickly degrade and can persist in the environment." Each time a cigarette butt is flicked outside a car window or stubbed out on a sidewalk, the risk of it contaminating the environment is high. Wind and rain often carry the toxic cigarette butt into a source of water, and then the pollution begins. Once the chemicals are in the water, any type of aquatic life can be left to die within their own habitat.

Although it does not take rocket science to understand cigarettes are bad for your health, I do not believe people think of the environmental effects when they light up. In a perfect world, nobody would smoke cigarettes and the environment and water sources would be clear of the contamination, but unfortunately this is not the case. What I hope this post does achieve though, is that maybe even just one person stumbles upon it and decides to take action. For example, with $11 million being spent a year in San Francisco to clean up butts, think of where that money could be allocated to instead! Hopefully one day we can live in a "cigarette-butt-free-world," but this can only be achieved if people start using the appropriate forms of disposal for their cigarettes.