The contrails have gone.Eyjafjallajokull, that volcano in Iceland has done what the threat of cataclysmic climate change, the credit crunch with its ever extending aftermath, even Osama bin Laden and his al-Qaeda could not. The ash mix of the Icelandic volcano has cleared the skies of aircraft and the ever present contrails in the skies above our heads.
Look up, the contrails have gone, the skies are empty and would the world be such a different place if planes were never to fly again?
Our supermarkets would be more seasonal, our beaches would be busier, posturing politicians and book-balancing businessmen wouldn’t be able to take quite such an all encompassing global attitude towards making profit or protecting oil. It would be like going back almost a hundred years and life might be simpler / happier / richer if we didn’t expect fresh pineapples and coconuts in the shops all year around, or to be able to buy a dress for six quid, wear it once and then throw it away and expect at least two holidays (one long haul, one short) each year.
Of course it isn’t quite as simple as that, it isn't just about the planes, but maybe we’d begin to refocus on the boundaries of this island of ours and the people within it, look inward rather than greedily ever outward. We might even retake some responsibility for looking after ourselves, growing more of our own food, making things for our own use rather than importing quite so much, we might even start creating futures for our children.
Just think.
In a few days the wind will change and the volcanic ash cloud will be gone. The planes will take to the air once more and what went on before will begin again as the contrails return to the skies. If only there were volcanoes that would throw ash into the atmosphere, volcanoes that could stop greed, spin, battle, vacuous celebrity, position, status, all the things that we need so much stopped, even for a little while.
I wonder what the world would be like? Just think. Do you really want those planes back? Are you missing those contrails?
Look up - how blue the morning skies, how clear the evening air.
Robert Mills commented on Facebook.
ReplyDelete"The world seems a more peaceful place with clear skies. Ban the plane!!"
It's easier to buy a six quid dress than to save for a more expensive one, just as it's easier to retreat within than care enough to look outside.
ReplyDeleteThe only people that notice how blue the sky is are the ones that never bought into the contails in the first place.
Flora Marriott commented on Facebook.
ReplyDelete"great post. i'll vote for the Height Party"
Lynda Henderson commented on Facebook.
ReplyDelete"I love aviation! Ban the planes?? Well then ban the Internet! and mobile phones too! They would be first to go on my list."
The planes are bad for the sky, because we made them so. Like the cars.
ReplyDeleteBut they can be so good: they can take us to Paris, to Venice, to India...
Report from Scotland. Some contrails spotted this am, but empty again now.
ReplyDelete" Vacuous celebrity"-great phrase.
I liked that period when we couldn't fly - it's good to stress test the things we take for granted every now and again.
ReplyDelete