It was a pleasant afternoon, Sana and her family was heading towards the beach. They lived quite close to one of the busiest beaches in the city, so they reached there within a few minutes. Everyone was excitedly looking forward to enjoying the cool breeze and the beautiful sunset.

Upon reaching there, everyone started indulging in fun activities. Sana’s siblings started playing volleyball and her parents sat on the benches. Sana strolled over to the more desolate part of the crowded beach, while taking a few of her favourite snacks with her. However, she noticed that she had to be careful while walking as there was a lot of garbage scattered all over the place. The worst part was that nobody paid heed to the mess and they only added to it by littering it more. Hence, influenced by everyone around her, Sana also threw the empty packets of the snacks on the beach. Her litter joined all the rest of the garbage and the sea waves lapped some of them up.

Soon, she went back to join her family. They all sat down together, enjoy the sight of the mighty sea. Soon after, a thick curtain of ominous clouds swept through the sky, covering it and it began thundering. All this indicated that a fierce storm was on the verge of hitting the shore, so everyone rushed to evacuate the beach.

Sana assisted her parents in packing all the stuff and they were out of there within a few minutes. By the time they returned home, it had started raining heavily.

Despite having a wonderful time, Sana was dejected as she could not watch the breathtaking sunset on the beach. She walked up to her room without uttering a word. Compelled by exhaustion, she soon fell into a deep slumber.

“Hurry everyone, let’s go and search for food,” someone said and Sana opened her eyes, only to find herself underwater.

There was a school of fish in front of her, apparently looking for prey. Suddenly, a fish at the back of the group got entangled in a plastic bag and began suffocating. None of the others noticed it struggling and carried on their endeavour.

Sana immediately swam towards it and released it from the plastic bag.

The poor fish had been petrified to death and expressed its gratitude to Sana for saving it. However, Sana was curious about how this lethal plastic bag ended up so deep in the ocean.

She decided to find out, so she inquired, “No need to thank me, dear fish. I am just curious about how this bag got here.”

“I do not mean to be rude, but it is the fault of you humans,” the fish replied.

Just then, a jellyfish and a seahorse approached. Seeing Sana, the timid seahorse ran for his precious life, but the fish chased him.

“There is no need to be frightened of this human. She saved me when I was getting suffocated by a plastic bag,” the fish explained.

At this, both the newcomers started cackling hysterically. Amused as well as puzzled, Sana asked them the reason behind their giggles.

The loose-tempered jellyfish answered hotly, “Do you even realise that you humans are the reason behind such mishaps?”

Now, Sana was more baffled than ever. Seeing her speechless, the courteous fish explained, “It’s very simple, when you humans litter the sea, beach and waterways with plastic bottles, plastic bags, cigarette butts and wrappers, that waste flows down here, harming us.”

Then the seahorse added, “The plastic bottles and bags that reach the ocean are mistaken by us marine animals as food and we ingest them. This way microplastics enters our tissues and when larger fish eat them as prey, the same toxic substance goes into their tissues. Hence, this cycle continues and, eventually, the plastic becomes part of your meals when you munch on marine animals.”

Sana was horrified to hear this vital piece of information. She urged the animals to tell her more about their troubles.

The wise fish continued, “When people use fertilisers on farms, the chemicals flow off into the waterways and eventually into the oceans.

Chemicals like nitrogen and phosphorus decrease the level of oxygen in the water, causing breathing issues for the animals.

The furious jellyfish also decided to share some of his knowledge too, “Marine animals get entangled or injured by all this debris, with numerous creatures becoming caught in discarded fishing nets and losing their lives! I mean, look around yourself. The ocean has definitely seen much better days.

Sana turned around to look and everywhere she ran her eyes, there was trash. The ocean was nothing like she had imagined!

The fish concluded earnestly, “But there is no need to lecture you about it, as I am sure that you are not one of those people who make our lives miserable.”

Suddenly, Sana woke up with a start. She was relieved that it was just a dream. But a feeling of insurmountable guilt that engulfed her, she realised that she had been one of those ignorant people who make marine animals suffer. Still, the thought of the marine animals sent a jolt of inspiration coursing right through her. With a bright smile on her face, she vowed to never litter the ocean again and to clean it up as much as possible. She viewed this dream as an eye-opener which educated her greatly.

Dear readers, marine animals have to bear the consequences of our reckless actions. So, if you cannot pick up the garbage, you can at least throw yours in the bin.

Published in Dawn, Young World, July 27th, 2024