📘 Part 3: Parks and gardens

This episode's vocabulary

Standpoint (noun) - a set of beliefs and ideas from which opinions and decisions are formed.

Filth (noun) - thick, unpleasant dirt.

Pest (noun) - an insect or small animal that is harmful or damages crops.

Hospitable (adj.) - providing good conditions for living or growing.

To flock (verb) - to move or come together in large numbers.

Sprawl (noun) - a large area of land covered with buildings, especially ones that have been added gradually over a period of time.

Cost of living (noun) - the amount of money that a person needs to live.

To take the edge off something (idiom) - to make something unpleasant have less of an effect on someone.

Earthy (adj.) - like or relating to earth.

Appealing (adj.) - attractive or interesting.

Handy (adj.) - useful or convenient.

Oppressive (adj.) - causing people to feel worried and uncomfortable.

To unwind (verb) - to relax and allow your mind to be free from worry after a period of work or some other activity that has made you worried.

To close in (phrasal verb) - to gradually get nearer to someone, usually in order to attack them.

Connectedness (noun) - the state of being connected and having a close relationship with other things or people.

Pollen (noun) - a powder, produced by the male part of a flower, that causes the female part of the same type of flower to produce seeds. It is carried by insects or the wind.

Evergreen (adj.) - always seeming fresh or remaining popular.

Questions and Answers

M: Do you think people should keep parks and gardens clean?

R: I mean, that makes sense just from a social standpoint. Nobody wants to live in filth all the time, do they? Aside from that it just looks better. Discourages pests, and I suppose provides a more hospitable environment. So it's definitely a good idea.

M: Are public parks or gardens popular among people who live in cities?

R: You would think so, wouldn't you? Cities aren't exactly known for having a lot of green spaces, so people would almost naturally flock there just to get a break from the sprawl.

M: Why might people like to grow flowers or vegetables?

R: Well, there's a lot to be said, for growing your own food at least. From an economic perspective, there's a cost of living crisis. So it might take the edge off of that if you're very good at it. And some people are just naturally earthy.

M: Why would people of different ages like to go to parks?

R: But we were talking about this the other day, actually. I think for younger people, the idea of having a free space to socialize and run around and burn off their energy would be quite appealing. Likewise, older people might enjoy a place to walk and relax.

M: What reasons might young people have for going to parks?

R: Well, like I said, I remember discussing this a while back, actually. It's handy for socialization and some sort of informal exercise. But it's usually less oppressive in these spaces, too. It's hard to unwind when you have all these buildings closing in on you.

M: What do older people like to do in parks?

R: I remember seeing something about this recently. A lot of it is connected to walking and relaxing like I already said. But there's something about generally getting closer to nature, the older people tend to have been separated from longer than younger people. So they get a chance to experience this nature connectedness more.

M: Why have they been separated?

R: I just suppose they've been alive longer. So they've been in the spaces that are separated from nature longer.

M: But if older people live in the village?

R: Well, that's true, but we're talking in general. And most people live in cities now.

M: What are the benefits of going to the park for young people and old people?

R: Other than the things I said previously? I think I've said all I can in that regard. It's all to do with being relaxed and having space to move.

M: Why do some people like planting flowers?

R: It's lost on me, to be honest, since I have allergies to plants and pollen, but I imagine they would say it makes the place look brighter and more natural. They also might want to support the local ecology if it's an outdoor space.

M: Hey, thank you, Rory, for your answers!

R: That's okay. Hopefully, they were or they will be evergreen.