Every day is Earth Day
I’ve been torn about writing something for Earth Day. Earth day should be every single day, and I am so very wary of tokenism. However I rarely make my beliefs explicit here and I have so much stuff to get off my chest, so where do I begin? This blog usually takes a diary form, with me describing something I’ve seen or experienced of the natural world in a narrative of some kind, and though I do try to infuse it with passion or meaning however slight, so often it just reads like a damn travelogue. Maybe it’s time for once to ditch the pretty narratives and get on with writing about why these places, these animals and plants matter. Not just why they matter to me personally, (although they do and I’m not intending to scrub the personal from my writing as if it were dirty, quite the opposite) but why they matter to us all.
No matter how little we do to stop global warming, habitat destruction and pollution in general, I don’t (perhaps foolishly) believe we have the capacity to completely destroy life. But if we carry on dirtying up the nest, Gaia will eventually shuck us off with one elegant shrug; us and all that we live beside in lovestruck familiarity – whales, tigers, all that charismatic fauna we love to watch on tv and all your favourite wild flowers too, we’ll all go together when we go. When a report is published describing a decline in zooplankton of more than 70% since the 1960s, as top banana in the food chain we need to be worried. If we want a world fit for cockroaches to live in, we are currently going the right way about it.
We all depend on our biosphere. Once that’s screwed so are we all, and oh, let’s not forget just how extremely screwed our children will be. There is no way off this planet; some day we will realise that there is no-where left to run. Global warming, habitat destruction and all that these entail make for a crisis far bigger than any other that humanity has had to face, yet we keep our heads down, sweat the small things and do nothing about the big fat gas guzzling elephant in the room.
We can ALL make a difference, by using less energy, lobbying for more clean renewable energy sources and not least protesting the lack of change from on high. Don’t wait for Government or big business to make changes, be the change yourself! Whatever your political or environmental beliefs, who wouldn’t want clean fresh air and a safe place to live, given the alternative?
Get Busy… click the links and find something positive to do on Earth Day!
Greenpeace UK Climate Change Page
Friends Of The Earth International
Centre For Alternative Technology
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Wonderful post
like you i believe it is our children and their children we need to be thinking of
although myself and Mel were never blessed with kids it is that thought that guides me to write about this wonderful planet we all call home
all the best Andy
Cheers Andy, lovely to see you here
I’m glad you liked the post, it’s a bit of a rant but I really do believe we can’t afford to look away on this one, politicians and business won’t do anything so that just leaves us. I love seeing the beautiful things you experience every day by living simply, what a fantastic example you are of what life can be all about.
Thank you for your posting…I expecially liked your suggestions in the final paragraph. You are so right – - there are many things we can do on a personal and local community level to help restore our earth’s health. Such a beautiful, rich treasure – -and we’re the stewards. Keep writing!
Thanks, again,
Greta.
Thank you for visiting Greta and taking the time to comment. I certainly will keep writing, with the hope that the more voices there are speaking about the importance of looking after the environment (for our own sakes if no other reason) the more people will begin to take action too.
Excellent post, Bird!
I just love your writing…so descriptive, so unique, so Bird! I just love it.
Anyways, who could not agree with every single point you’ve made? I remember seeing on television awhile back a program where the interviewer asked an environmentalist to name just one thing that we as humans could do to best help the planet. He answered, “Die.” And there you go. Not that we should start offing ourselves, but it really makes the point of who the culprits really are in this environmental meltdown thing. Like anyone should have to be told.
Holy cow, rambling now…later dah-ling!
)
Hi Holly, thanks for your support! I get a bit freaked when I write about something important so it means a lot to know that you enjoy how I put things across, I’m not wanting to alienate anyone though what I say is strong stuff.
Mind you, the words of that environmentalist you quote are about as strong (and chilling) as it gets. I certainly don’t advocate destroying humanity as a solution, but I guess all we are doing right now is going about our collective suicide the slow way.
Many people thing that those like me who want to protect the small things and keep our ecosystems healthy are sentimental for nature and anti human in our thinking. That judgement couldn’t be more wrong; I believe that unless we start cleaning up our act, showing a bit of respect to this planet we live on, then the planet will impolitely show us the door. Life will go on perfectly well without us, even if it takes horrendous mass extinctions to kick us out. That’s why we have to start playing nice – not for poor old mother natures sake, but for our own. (hey that was a bit rambly and possibly better than what I wrote in my actual post)
Thanks Holly for providing brain food as ever
Wow! That was quite the post. You have expressed my inner feelings so very well that I’m speechless. Yes! Every day ought to be Earth Day.
Timethief, it’s great to see you here! Thank you so much for this comment, it’s fantastic to read that there are others who feel this way too. If we all make every day Earth Day who knows what we might achieve? I was a little worried I hadn’t been positive enough, you know, that people might get turned off by how strongly I feel but there IS something positive in trying to make every day matter. Thank you for being so positive and kind, knowing that you hear me and understand what I’m trying to say is a huge encouragement.
We think about this a lot, Billy and I. Especially since we DO have children, and want them to have the opportunity to live, love and enjoy nature as we have. I am so overwhelmed by daily life, that I used to feel lost when it came to making a difference in environmental causes. Even seemingly obvious things like supporting an environmental charity or writing a politician in support of a bill aren’t always as good as they seem- would the politics have the effect I hope for? Would my money or time be more effective elsewhere? Are there unintended consequences for these actions? I don’t have the time to figure it all out!
But increasingly I have realized that my efforts are best focused elsewhere: here, in my home, in my daily life, with my children and my community. Changing my personal habits, my buying habits, my very thoughts, and then leading my children by example. Simply loving nature and choosing to be a part of it often. Remembering to consider my impact. This is how I will really make a difference. I still look for ways to help the wider world, but it is in setting my own corner straight that I can have the greatest impact.
Kit, I’m a total advocate of grassroots change. When people take it AS READ that you save energy, recycle everything, don’t need to spend all your cash on meaningless shiny tinsel etc etc, then we’ll have really started something, and the more people there are in any neighbourhood doing stuff like that the closer we get to critical mass and seeing a change that will work from the bottom up. That’s how I try to live my life. Organisations like Greenpeace do good work but they kind of run like a political party nowadays, you see their campaign, give them a funding donation and they do the work for you… there is nothing wrong with that up to a point, but every individual can decide to be the change too, under their own steam. We all have to take responsibility for what we do, and not be looking over the garden wall and saying “well he’s not doing it, why should I?”
Maybe it’s easy for me to walk the talk because I find that if anything it enriches my life to live this way, I certainly don’t think I miss out on anything important. I live on an absolute shoestring and want for nothing at all. I love how you are bringing your kids up, every time I drop by to visit your blog it fills me with hope and inspiration. Thank you for that.
Earth Day is the most important “holiday” for me. I don’t see how any other holiday matters if Earth Day is not considered paramount in importance. I agree that every day is Earth Day, however, having this one special 24-hour period to focus on love and gratitude for our home is spiritual for me.
I really am so glad that I read your beautiful post, having just read one elsewhere that was surprisingly sarcastic and flippant. Now I can shut off the computer and get some sweet sleep!
Lydia, I’m glad that this post might have helped give you rest! Having a special time in which to focus on our gratitude to the Earth can only be a good thing, and hopefully some of the sentiments of the day will spread outwards into daily life too. The person who wrote flippantly is most likely feeling uncomfortable on Earth Day because they don’t like being faced with and cannot look at certain truths. Many people are more comfortable keeping their heads down, their lifestyles intact and themselves separate from the world, but who are they kidding really? I’d count myself in here too by the way. The thing is, the more I try to do, the happier I become and that’s something I REALLY wish I could get across. For me trying to walk the talk isn’t about giving up a comfortable lifestyle, it’s about gaining a better one.
You are so so right, Earth day should be everyday. BTW excellent post. Thanks for sharing. Anna
Thank you for reading Anna, I’m always chuffed when you drop by!