I was here!

Something I have questioned in my research on journaling is "Why do you journal?"

For many people their responses were based on somehow leaving a record that they were here, alive and lived a life. This is a reasonable deduction to make about human behaviour without any intense research really. In pre-historic times we carved pictures on cave walls, we build structures, take photos, write books, put our foot print on wet cement .... and some of us write in journals, keep visual diaries, video diaries or blogs ... all as ways of saying "I was here".

I understand this desire. I write a blog, keep numerous journals and yes, I have done the wet cement thing and even had a hand in some graffiti when I was a teen ... I actually have no problem with graffiti that doesn't destroy property ... I have worked in youth services and have even created graffiti projects ...

But.

There is always a but isn't there?

Don't destroy the beauty around you to record you were here. It just tells everyone you're an idiot, with little self respect and no respect for the world around you. Who wants to be remembered for that?

This posting is inspired by a visit to the Perth Zoo where some really great conservation work is going on ... and where the photograph above was taken by yours truly ... the gardens at the zoo are stunning ... and this bamboo (as was much of it) is ruined ... for goodness sakes find some wet cerement somewhere or buy a blank book!