What is a River?

Author: Nina Williams

Rivers in Art

December 5, 2019 / / 0 Comments

I was reflecting on the class and remembered looking at rivers in art. I really like how the piece we looked at used the journey aspect of a river to show the journey of a man’s life. I looked up artwork with rivers and found some interesting results.

Starry Night Over the Rhone

This reminded me of the word association activity we did and how someone said reflection. Here the reflection is quite literal, as the river is reflecting the sky. However, rivers can also be associated with reflection as it makes you think more about your life and your place in nature.

Of course, I also got a lot of historical paintings like George Washington Crossing the Delaware, which also reminded me of the book the Founding Fish and how rivers are overwhelmingly present in our past, our history.

Art is always up for interpretation and I thought it was cool rivers are the same and how their broad meaning can be incorporated into art.

Rivers in Film

December 5, 2019 / / 0 Comments

After learning that the Lord of the Rings had a dam removal scene, I was curious as to whether there were other movies with rivers in them that I never noticed. I found this article on American Rivers that had a list of movies where rivers play a role.

The ones I liked the most were The Good Dinosaur and Pocahontas

The Good Dinosaur

Pocahontas

 

Save Our Rivers Shirt

December 4, 2019 / / 0 Comments

I was shopping online and came across this shirt from Patagonia with the words “Save Our Rivers” which reminded me of the DamNation documentary. Surrounding the words are a bunch of kayaks. It made me think about all the beautiful rivers we saw in the documentary and how when the dams were finally removed, people were allowed to see that beauty without a dam interfering and how those people at the end got to kayak down the river. I often wasn’t that bothered by dams, but I am someone who loves to be in the outdoors like going hiking and doing recreational activities outdoors. That movie really inspired me and made me think more about how things like dams get in the way of that and if they really take away from nature’s beauty.

Tree Roots

December 4, 2019 / / 0 Comments

While walking through Central Park in over Thanksgiving break, I noticed these tree branches that all around there tress, branching out but also connected to one another and it reminded me of the behavior of a river and all of their “branches.” They also were on different levels as the ground was uneven, similar to the “waves” of a river.

Similar to this photo I found online (since I didn’t get a good photo of the roots).

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/191403052890805500/?lp=true

Irrigation Drying Up Rivers

October 11, 2019 / / 2 Comments

https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2019/10/02/766510790/irrigation-for-farming-could-leave-many-of-the-worlds-streams-and-rivers-dry

I found an NPR article about how irrigation for farming could lead to many rivers being dried up. For example, many streams in Colorado and Kansas were no longer “functioning”, as in they were all dried up and the only thing there was a dirt path. These waterways get their water partially front groundwater, but farmers have been interfering through irrigation. The deep wells that have been drilled in already pretty dry areas, so when crops are grown there, the land becomes drier. Since it doesn’t rain a lot there, the plants grow by pulling water up through the ground. Farmers also pump water, so much so that the water table as fallen drastically. This has made it so the water cannot flow into the rivers anymore. The article mentions this happening in many other places too, such as California, India, and China. I think this is one example of the relationship between us and rivers. In this case, how our actions affect rivers and how changes in the river can affect us too.

Karl Stirner Arts Trail

September 19, 2019 / / 1 Comment

Yesterday I went to the Karl Stirner Arts Trail to run. At first, I just ran back and forth on the trail. We did sprints and other drills. Our last run was more of a cool-down run so I ran at a slow pace. As I ran back, I noticed so many things I didn’t before. Before I was focused on practice and not mindful of the environment around me. As I lightly jogged back I paid more attention to the scenery. I was amazed that I didn’t even notice it before. I saw dogs in the park, I saw birds flying above, and spent more time looking at the artwork and boards with information on them, rather than just glancing. I feel like there’s so many things like this around us, but it’s just a matter of paying attention.

Tai Tam River

September 5, 2019 / / 1 Comment

Back home in Hong Kong, I live near the ocean, but not too far there’s a river. This summer I rode the bus only for a few minutes and hiked about 15 minutes to this pool and waterfall. I hiked along the river and had to cautiously walk downhill on a very rocky and steep path. Having talked to a lot of people about Hong Kong, they all view Hong Kong as a busy city. While this is true, as it is a business hub, I often think more about the South Side of Hong Kong (where I live.) The Southside has many hiking trails and beaches. What I love about Hong Kong is the mix of skyscrapers and shopping malls with nature. What was interesting about this river was that the start of the trail was off to the side of the middle of a very busy road. It was kind of an abrupt interruption for the busyness of Hong Kong. It was weird that one second I could be swimming in a pool that was silent except for the crashing of the waterfall, and the next I could be back on the street with people in a hurry to get to their job. This river is very closed off my towering walls of rocks. This made it so when I was there, I felt like I was in a completely different world. While I was in this river, I had no concept of time or even where I was. I felt completely thoughtless and only focused on the present, which was being in the river.

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