South Beach, Troon, Feb 1st

A wild walk on a very blustery day. The wind roaring too much to hold a conversation, waves crashing over words. Hardly anyone about so we enjoyed the stretching sand and water, feeling like the only people for miles. As we made our way back, on the incoming tide we found full four pint bottles of milk washing ashore and a lot of very curious birds who took some persuading that they shouldn’t be allowed to peck through the plastic. Litter picking in the high tide line later, we found more. An inner storyteller was unleashed, imagining scenarios - where had the milk come from? Did someone even know it was gone? Was there a lighthouse keeper somewhere gloomily staring at a cup of black tea or an island milkman looking guilty? But the truth is, we produce and consume so much that we don’t need, that they probably have barely been missed. Written off and replaced in the blink of an eye. Every piece of litter has a past and a story of where it’s come from, how it reached our communities, but whilst walking I preferred to try and remember that we’ve got the power to make a difference here and now - to clean up what’s already polluting our environment and change our consumption and habits to shift the balance in favour of a brighter, healthier, happier relationship with our planet - milk bottles and all.