Your Land

& My Land Essay, Research Paper

Your Land and My Land

There are many differences in a city when compared to a rural setting. One of the largest differences deals with that of the visual surroundings. Cities are filled with buildings, streets traffic and people, while the country is filled with trees, mountains, streams and animals. With such commotion in this city-type setting, the natural environment is altered a great deal. Natural wildlife, which runs rampant in the spacious great outdoors, is seemingly non-existent in urban areas. This, however, is not the case by any means. It is necessary to look a little closer to find wildlife on the land of a city. The wildlife that still exists inside the city has learned to adapt to their environment as means of survival. Pigeons can be found eating breadcrumbs from an old man?s hands in the park. Rats scour the sewers and alleys for scraps. Squirrels relax in the trees and make their moves for food accordingly, while avoiding some hazards such as cars and people that surround them. These are all examples of how animals can adapt to the setting and survive.

In the country or any rural area, nature functions in a different manner. People must learn to adapt to their surroundings, while animals and nature continue to live on peacefully. While driving down a country highway at night, one must watch carefully for deer, moose or any other type of animal that could have wandered into the middle of the road. Roads themselves leave people in the country dealing more with nature?s wrath. Snow on a windy dirt road up a mountain becomes much more of a hindrance as

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compared to snow that would be plowed away and kept melted with salt on a flat city street. A large tree that could have fallen in the road out in the country could take days to be cleared; yet in the city such a tree would be removed in an immediate fashion.

Visiting nature or animals while in the city, can be accomplished by a trip to the park or zoo. Both parks and zoos inside the city are very high maintenance, at the same time costly. In rural area, parks have existed forever and upkeep is not the hardest of tasks to accomplish. In the country, even if a park is unavailable, one is still surrounded by a sense of calm while animals co-exist with humans. When visiting a zoo in the city, it is obvious to see that animals are not around by their own free will. Being held captive and surrounded by bars limits the ability for animals to roam freely ad live their life the way it was meant to be. Psychologically, this may have something to do with the stereotype of city people not being as hospitable as country dwellers, in general. In the hustle and bustle of the city, many people have a tendency to get so wrapped up and trapped in their typically fast-paced life, leaving little opportunity to unwind, relax and basically rest the brain.

Appreciation of nature would also have to be one of the biggest differences. One who lives in the country or rural area that is surrounded by nature day in and day out, might not appreciate what they have around them. Yet one who lives in the city and escapes to a park, zoo, or even vacations to a secluded area; enjoys every minute of the peace and tranquility. Respect is kept by a city-dweller for the land that remains unscathed by mankind and its every growing population and industrialization. For without such rural areas, one wouldn?t have a place to go ease the mind. This goes to

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show how people can so easily take things for granted.

Another major difference that is easily noticed is the many sounds heard. In a country field one can put his or her ear to the wind and listen to grass blowing, birds chirping, water flowing in a nearby stream and maybe the faint rumble of your neighbor?s tractor. Those little vibrations from that tractor are a fraction of the noise people are subject to everyday in every city. Motors running, horns honking, hundreds upon thousands of people talking, and your own brain trying to take in everything are perfect examples of the loud sounds heard in the average urban area. Many people who live in cities accept this and go on about their lives. Other people would be driven insane within a matter of days. This is an example of how a person?s environment during the course of his or her life directly shapes who that person is.

This next difference focuses on a different sense. When someone takes in a big breath of fresh air in the mountains or the wide-open farmlands that person will be able to open up the lungs and almost smell the sensation of cool clean air. Pine trees, strawberry fields and of course, cow manure are some common scents in the rural setting. In a city there is also a wide array of odors one can smell. Unfortunately, one of the first that comes to mind is the exhaust fumes from the ever-increasing amount of cars and trucks on the road. Another rather unpleasant smell is the trash that sometimes does not get picked up early enough. There are however, many appealing smells in a city as well. Picture a hungry tourist walking down a busy street. One could be overwhelmed by the smells of many different kinds of cuisine. Indian food, Italian food, Turkish food, and Chinese food are just a few choices one has in a city. In a scarcely populated area, it?s

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either Joe?s Diner or your freezer for the everyday dining experience.

Either way you look at it, there are pros and cons to each of the described settings. All in all, the busier city life has access to more choices, more action, and more overall excitement. The downside to that lifestyle is the stress, noise and air pollution, and other unsightly scenes and smells. The rural, or countryside area, on the other hand, has other intangible advantages such as the calm, easy routine in a laid back society. The natural sounds and openness of this atmosphere seem to let loose a feeling of serenity that is too difficult to describe in words. Although there are many things that are hard to acquire and help in certain situations may be hard to come by, the rural areas definitely have a quality all to themselves. In the end, a good quote to live by is ?To each his own?.

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