Earth Day

Published in the Blackfoot Morning News, April 2011

Earth Day is upon us. Every April 22, we focus our attention to the state of our environment. We learn the reduce-reuse-recycle options. We learn how to better conserve our water. We plan neighborhood gardens, explore solar energy, eat organic, and walk barefoot in the grass. April 22 is about protecting the Earth.

As if the Earth needs our protection. The idea that we need to protect the earth and environment has long seemed silly to me. The environment will survive us. We are puny carbon-based life forms spreading like a cancer across the terra firma, with no real end in sight, it seems. But are we more powerful than the natural forces on this planet? I doubt it.

When I think of the Earth’s resiliency, my imagination floats to the bottom of the ocean. Perhaps you’ve seen the pictures—strange, luminescent fish and other creatures, thriving miles below the ocean’s surface. Can humankind cause enough damage that will reach those depths? Even if we manage to blast and outbreed every form of life on the surface, what of these “Gaia’s reserves” living far beyond our reach? Perhaps the fish swimming around the wreck of the Titanic today are the elephants and orangutans of tomorrow. Perhaps the microorganisms hanging out by deep sea volcanos will someday, a bazillion years from now, evolve, rise up, and flop themselves on the shore of a brand new world. A world that has finally shaken us off.

I don’t know what we’re doing here on this planet. I just know it’s a blessing to live in this small cocoon that somehow sustains us in the infinite, cold void of the universe. We have the responsibility of being stewards of the environment, and we also have the brain power to do it right. But when it comes to environmental issues, it seems you are either preaching to the choir or preaching to a brick wall. There are those who recycle and leave no trace and monitor their carbon footprint, and those who throw garbage out the windows on the highway and see our natural resources as a genetically-altered cash cow. We humans, wherever we come from it seems, manage the environment like a rowdy 6-year old—much better at breaking and destroying things, and quite grumpy at the thought of having to clean it all up.

Earth Day is about cleaning up the environment, and it can also be about cleaning up our act. Sometimes, we have to control what we can and let the rest go. By changing ourselves we change the world—at least the little worlds we live in individually. So what little changes might you want to make—what garbage would you like to take out once and for all, what thorough cleansing is long overdue? Happier people make healthier choices, and how can a day celebrating the beauty of this planet be a catalyst for a cleaner, gentler frame of mind?

Whether you visit an environmental fair, resolve to buy local produce, or spend a day hiking in the woods, Earth Day is a great opportunity to ponder the miracle and mystery of life. This planet is alive; Gaia naturally recycles, naturally restores, naturally sustains. We each, individually, share this immense power—we can initiate change, and tap into the endless supply of intellect, creativity, and spirit for the betterment of ourselves and those in our orbits. If enough people did that, what an environment we would create. Onward!

Nancy Goodman is a licensed counselor with an emphasis on life and career coaching. Fumbling Toward Serenity currently runs every other week. 208-406-3234, goodnanc@yahoo.com. http://vocatusidaho.blogspot.com.