I Don’t Like Going to the Dump

Wednesday, January 4, 2023

In central north Maui are two small hills. They are man made. They started life as massive holes in the ground, a third has been dug, those holes were slowly filled up and then stuff was continually piled on top of them. Dirt and grass create the facade of a hill. They are garbage dumps, filled with the unwanted products of life styles on Maui.

Someone once said to me words to the effect of,

You can’t throw things away. You can only put them where you don’t have to look at them.

Well what we throw away here in Maui is in daily site of everyone who drives through the central island, albeit covered in grass.

I don’t like going there, because in doing so I know that I am contributing to the growth of the next hill. I am contributing to a potential hazard for future generations. I don’t like putting my garbage bins out every Thursday, as I know that I am contributing to the growth of the next hill.

”Well, be more mindful of what you consume and throw out,” I hear people say, and I hear you. I am not saying this with any pride, or looking for solutions. Simply an observation and a feeling of overwhelm following a visit to the dump this morning. We are installing new doors due to the weather giving a beating to our old doors. Some material is being recycled, some is going to Habit for Humanity here on Maui, and some I took to the dump.

It is nice to have the mess off our property, to feel the cleanness and see a job done, and I can see the rubbish in the hills of central Maui.