Let me start by giving a bit of background. Being 17 years old and consumed with my own opinions, I never considered how our environment is effected by inorganic substances. However, I recently took at cruise to islands such as Costa Maya and Belize. Every morning I would wake up around 6:30 and go for a run on the outdoor track. I’ve never been more appreciative of the ocean than I was running atop it. Seeing the sun rise and the ocean sky that looked as if someone had set up and easel and painted it was an amazing experience. With that being said one night I was sitting up on the top deck reading, writing, and simply taking in the beautiful ocean surrounding me. As I watched the clear blue waves gently roll into the ship I noticed a black splotch floating in the water. When I looked closer I realized that the small black splotch was oil. Never before had I considered the impact of oil in the ocean. I always played off how bad the oil spills really were, always believed that it was something easy to scoop up and get out. I studied that little splotch as long as I could see it and it dawned on me that the ship must have leaked that little bit as we pulled out of port. The oil didn’t separate, it didn’t sink and it didn’t dissolve, it just floated an inanimate object with no care in the world. It was at this moment that I realized how bad oil spills actually were. Now that there has recently been an oil spill near Louisiana I’ve noticed the severity of the issue. I don’t know how to clean oil, and I don’t know how to solve the environmental problem it presents. What I do know is that if this were to happen again we need to be ready to send as much help as possible. Something as simple as getting together with teachers and classmates to ship soap to animal rescue foundations can and has made a world of difference.