Be a responsible tourist...

“I traveled far and wide to collect the rarest of fish breeds,”
The father told his son, fulfilling his boasting needs.
The little son looked hard at the glass case on the stand.
He had seen the fish grow in number on an alien land.

“The yellow is from Africa and the green from New Zealand
Look at the golden fish and that one with a silver band,”
His father had a story to tell about each of his favourite catch.
As they spoke they saw a tiny little fish, from his egg, hatch!

“Dad, these are the lucky ones that have survived your travel,”
The young boy told his father, his voice without a marvel!
“There are a million unlucky ones that must be dead and floating”.
On hearing the little boy’s words, his father stopped gloating.

“Oil from one of the ships you travelled in to make your pick,
Certainly would have left his kith and kin, lifeless or sick!
Other life forms are not a trophy for us to enclose in a case to exhibit,
They too have the freedom to travel the planet as they deem it fit!”

His son’s words brought tears to the grown up man’s hitherto dry eyes.
“Callous I've been, wish you had told me my collection was nice,
And just moved on with your life, doing what other boys your age did.
Your thought for the life around you makes you a very special kid.

I am mighty proud to be the father of a boy as kind as you.
And shall return the fish to the waters and spend more time with you!
I shall do my job of raising my child and leave the fish to its father.
They are the unique property of nature and not mine, I gather!”

Image courtesy:http://response.restoration.noaa.gov

Author’s note:

I came across this image on response.restoration.noaa.gov

As I kept looking at this picture, I felt an urge to appeal  on behalf of animals that do not know why they are dying.

While some of us want to travel around the world to enjoy the boundless beauty of nature, there are some others who want a world around them!

When you travel be responsible. Take care not to destroy the world that was created for them…