Merri Creek

We held our Global Earth Exchange day at the Merri Creek in the suburb of Coburg in Melbourne, Australia. The creek widens out into a lake, then there is an overflow site where it reverts back to being a creek. At the overflow there is often a large amount of rubbish and it can look very sad and neglected. It was our intention to hold the GEX day ceremony at this site and to clean up the area with rubbish collection. GEX day occurred after a few days and nights of heavy rain. The lake and creek were absolutely swollen, and the overflow area which was normally covered in rubbish was awash with roaring, frothy water! It seemed that mother nature had her own plans for cleansing the area. We took shelter under a nearby bridge beside the creek and did some litter collection, then made the RadJoy bird using rocks, green grass, branches and leaves. We even found a blue ball and a marble that were perfect for the bird’s eye (which proved very tempting for the dogs!) We did this in the spirit of thanking the creek for providing a green strip throughout the city to walk and cycle along, and slow down and reconnect to nature. We also appreciated that particular site for all it offers—despite the large quantities of rubbish and contaminated water that it endures, and the lack of respect that it and other parts of the creek still encounter. We finished our gathering sipping cups of hot chai and sampling turkish delights and gourmet chocolate while the rain fell heavily and the creek continued its own cleansing process.