Where has

the River Gone?

I come from a tiny village in the north of Spain

a place surrounded by nature When I was a

child our school instilled in us the value of

water conservation since Spain has always

been a dry country This was also happening at

a time when there was a particular television

campaign the memory of which is vivid in my

mind It featured a song and a childs voice

asking her father about where the river and

forest had gone The songs haunting lyrics

painted a vivid picture of a future where nature

might disappear if we didnt protect our water

resources That sense of loss of nature if we

didnt care for water was etched in my mind

forever This feeling was new for me then but

one that has endured until today

As a teenager I loved going to a beautiful

water reservoir near the mountains during

the summer It was a peaceful getaway from

the crowded beaches where my friends and

I would swim kayak and hang out on the

shoreline Years later we continued to go there

to get away from the city and our busy lives

Even as adults me and my friends still visited

this place of peace that was also a symbol of

summer days

Years f lew by and I moved from my hometown

to Amsterdam On one particularly hot

afternoon when I had gone back for a brief

summer visit I suggested to my childhood

friend Anna that we went to our beloved

reservoir just the two of us The day was

perfect for a swim it was over thirtyf ive

degrees and since it was August we knew

that the reservoir would be a more secluded

option than the crowded beaches When I asked

her she hesitated brief ly and told me that she

had heard on television that the water level

had dramatically dropped We decided to go

anyway and see the situation for ourselves

as it couldnt be that bad I expected it to look

different but was not ready for what I saw

The water was much much lower The parts

where we used to swim in rich clean water

were empty and the plants that used to be

underwater were all dried up It was shocking

The afternoon was turning grey which added

to the hostility of the scenery I remember

standing there in silence next to my friend

both looking at the overwhelming white colour

where there once had been a lot of green We

walked in silence for a bit trying to f ind a nice

spot that resembled the place that we used to

know but eventually gave up and drove home

in silence It felt like the scary distant future

wed heard about as children in that haunting

song was no longer an upsetting possibility

but that it had become our reality

Since then every year as summer approaches

we talk about the water reservoir and how

nice it would be to swim there one more time

Theres always an air of sadness when we

bring it up but before changing the subject

we still say that we still might be able to do

it one day The longing for that place is a

powerful reminder that climate change is

not some distant abstract notion but a stark

and pressing reality that affects us all its

happening now and right next to our home

Helena Style Muñoz

Helena Style Muñoz is an International

Off icer at VU Amsterdam summer and winter

schools and is also a part of the SOZ Green

Ambassadors team Before starting at VU she

was an English language teacher in Catalonia

Spain where shes from Aside from education

she is interested in nature zoology literature

and politics

wwwlinkedincominhelenastyle

Helena

Style Muñoz