Yes, it’s Earth Day, and the airwaves are chock full of celebration stories and suggestions of things to do today and every day to save the planet. I must say that I am shocked at how many people don’t seem to think the planet needs saving—or at least, they aren’t doing much about it. I see things every day that ought not to happen, from throwing recyclable aluminum cans in the trash to dumping 30-gallon containers, or even truckloads, of recyclable paper in the garbage—this in a State that leads the Nation in recycling. How much effort does it take? In reality it takes very little to recycle that can or piece of paper. It takes only an extra moment of thought and changing or re-thinking habits we take for granted.
Not to toot our horn, but this Earth Day Sam and I did absolutely nothing out of the ordinary to observe it. We already recycle most of the waste our household generates, and much of the rest is composted. We already use fluorescent light bulbs and re-use plastic food containers several times before they go into the recycle bin. Plastic bags have been replaced with cloth tote bags. Most of the clothes we buy come from stores such as Value Village, rather than Target, Nordstrom’s, or Macy’s, so they are recycled too. We try to grow at least some of our food, but that is more a personal preference, a pleasure, and an attempt to stay in control of quality and supply. Our decision to have our own chickens came primarily from the fact that I personally LIKE chickens as creatures, not to save money. Believe me when I say we will not break even on the poultry project until well after we buy the next set of chicks in another year or maybe two! It would be far cheaper and easier to continue buying organic eggs and meat at the grocery store from antibiotic-free, cage-free, free-roaming chickens raised by somebody else. Are we sorry? No, but staying in control of production and quality comes at a price, and we would not have made the investment in the first place if we had not believed in the outcome. I’m just glad we live where we have the freedom to do these things. Owning your own home allows you to do much more than you can do living in an apartment.
Still, that’s no excuse for not gardening, for example. There are garden plots available in many of our communities for apartment dwellers, and the owners of our last apartment home actually encouraged residents to garden. It not only made living there much more enjoyable, but it also made people more likely to stay because they had made an investment of their own in living there.
My own Earth Day challenge is this: Take a few moments and consider the impact of changing just one habit. As Americans, we say we believe that one person can make a difference. Think of how much it would mean if all of us made the quality decision to change one thing we do every day. Maybe it would be to recycle all your aluminum cans from now on—or perhaps not to need them anymore. Maybe it would be to recycle all the paper you use—or to find ways not to need it anymore. Maybe it would be to make or buy your own bags to use when shopping, rather than continuing to use plastic ones from stores. It is possible. Start drinking water you have filtered yourself at home and carrying it in your own container. Start reading digital versions of magazines on-line that you currently subscribe to in paper. Stop receiving all those unsolicited catalogs that come in the mail. Maybe start making some of your own clothes, instead of buying anomalous, cheap mega-manufactured items made in sweat shops in Third World countries. Make your own statement! Stand out from the crowd! Be your own person, not what TV commercials say you should be!
YOU can make a difference. It only takes making a decision and carrying through with it—and it is worth doing.
