By Jolly Patel
As I make my way into Washington Square Park and look out at the layers of foliage, from the burnt orange to the golden hues, I am reminded of a time when I first experienced seasons, particularly winter and fall, in the United States. I was 7 years old, living in a tiny little town of Angola, Indiana, and after knowing year-round summers in India, it was exciting but also unsettling. What comes next? With an ever-changing environment, there was so much room for change.
Growing up in the small rural village of Sadhli, India, I was an anxious but adventurous kid. I loved climbing trees, but hated getting pricked by thorns, and even the sight of a snake made my skin pale. I remember spending many months living with my uncles, aunts, and my maternal grandmother. I would pick mangoes from one of the dozen mango trees in the backyard. I also remember my grandmother’s footsteps as they chased me throughout the house, her voice roaring at me from afar for picking the mangoes she had been waiting on to ripen.
After I had moved to the United States, I tried to hold on to all the memories, almost reminiscing the experiences every day, the good and bad. Little did I know it would be fourteen years before I would see them again. Even though I could still recall a huge part of my childhood very clearly, I did lose the connection I had with nature and the sense that we are a part of it. Having been surrounded by the suburbs of Indiana and the highways of Florida, the connection to trees and my adventurous spirit had long faded.
Now I focused on a new kind of anxiety, financial insecurity. In Florida, I constantly felt a mismatch in energy and purpose, nature felt like a separate entity. Most of my time was spent indoors doing homework, just waiting for my mom to get home from work. Outdoor activities like hiking or even going for a walk in the park were not possible due to proximity and the unsafe nature of the surrounding area. I spent a lot of time picturing what that other timeline would have looked like for me. What if I had never left India? There were both pros and cons to that “what if.” Certain freedoms I have now could not exist, but my connection to the soil, community, and the trees would be different.
After relocating several more times throughout adulthood, I am happy to have called Queens home for the last seven and a half years. What began as a corporate relocation took me down a non-linear path of self-discovery and finding my greater purpose. In Queens, I have thought a lot about how my experience as an outsider shaped me. I always focused on work and cared too much about what others thought. The concept of taking care of the Earth felt like it was a responsibility that I was not qualified for. In order to understand my role effectively, I needed to quit my corporate job, which had been pivotal in helping my family alleviate a lot of financial instability. Now the focus was on doing something that would have a positive impact on the planet and would contribute to helping my community. That was in July 2021, and COVID had likely heightened my spirit, but it would take several detours before I would get to where I was going.
I decided to focus on volunteering in my community and understanding the economic disparities amongst the different neighborhoods and the problems they were facing. Something began to awaken in me that felt like a renewed sense of purpose. Over the course of three years, I focused not only on getting to know my community, but on understanding it, figuring out why issues never seem to get resolved. With a burning desire to be more active in my community, I first began working with the local Assemblymember and handling cases for constituents in my district, helping individuals from all walks of life dealing with issues around tree care, healthcare, tenants’ rights, and taxes. The tree care issue was particularly close to me. While some community members were demanding more trees to be planted, there were also many others who wanted them to be cut down due to deteriorating sidewalks or because they viewed them as a hazard. It was saddening to find out that even climbing trees could lead to a fine.
Back home in India, I used to take trees for granted, not realizing one day my connection to them would become restricted. Now I feel a sense of pride in knowing that I am working toward improving the health of my neighborhoods. Learning to compost was also an eye-opening experience. Composting is a process of healing the soil, but often it is overlooked by many. People don’t realize that soil is a living organism, crucial for sustaining life. The question now is, how do we get people to care? If only everyone realized how beautiful our quality of life can be if we focus on working together and holding on to the connection to our planet. Through these gradual connections, I am also beginning to see the growth in my role as a steward for nature and finding a voice through community building.
From understanding my own role in the climate movement to learning about the importance of the role arts and culture play in inspiring others, it has been a journey that I would not change. I will continue sharing my story in hopes that it can also encourage others to follow their passion and not give up. We all have a part to play in taking care of the Earth, but we don’t have to do it alone. And sometimes, sharing those ideas and spreading awareness can create a ripple effect. After all this time, I hope the seven-year-old me would be proud of how far we’ve come from the days of climbing mango trees.