What befalls the earth, befalls us all

The day dawned bright and sunny last Thursday. It was the first warm spring day after a cool and cloudy March. Instinctually the valley and its residents knew that the promise of rebirth would be realized. Winter was over.

We are tied to the seasons and the dawning of spring. We have that connection deep in the tissues of our body. It is a knowledge that we share with ancients—what befalls the earth befalls the sons and the daughters of the earth.

Over time, our technology and our love affair with our modern inventions has caused a wedge to be driven between our knowledge and living that connection with the earth. And with that technology firmly in place, we are destroying creation.

But such is not necessarily the outcome. The very technology that we have could be used to preserve the ecology of our living planet.

Treading lightly or embracing our connection to the planet is a concept relegated to disdain because it runs contrary to the consumerist teachings that has swept this great country. It is not economically feasible to be ecologically sensitive. We have made no provision for disposal of waste and the replenishing of natural resources.

We have prided ourselves with taming the natural resources and do not have the will to tread lightly on the earth.

Many of us remember when we first learned about global warming. It was something that only zealot environmentalists believed to be true. It was curious how this figment of a Chicken Little story became scientifically responsible without an explanation or an admission of incorrect thinking.

The earth is our planet. The earth is our home. The time is now to wake up and acknowledge that it is so.

The earth is a living entity—and it is dying. Scientists say that it is its natural progression not dissimilar to our own journey on this earth. But we have sped up the cycle and in the very near future we will see great changes including the extinction of fossil fuels.

Suddenly the idealistic dream of alternate energy providing what we need will become our reality—probably without an explanation or an admission of incorrect thinking.

But we do not need to wait until then to develop the will to tread lightly.

It is not foolish or naïve to honor the earthy, our planet, our home. It is in fact, the essence of our very existence.

So when the day dawns bright and you breathe a sigh of relief and involuntarily smile, remember your connection to the earth and take any small steps to take care of our living home.

Let every day be an Earth Day. What else could it possibly be?

Dr. Punnybone

Up in Smoke