Imagine a dog out for a walk. It is intent on what it is doing, and then, all of a sudden, SQUIRREL! Off it bounds in pursuit of the squirrel until... SQUIRREL! It veers to the right, chasing the second squirrel, and then... SQUIRREL! Some people are like that dog, but instead of chasing squirrels, it is the next fad, the next shiny thing, even the next worthy cause.
Right now, there are so many worthy causes, so many things that need fixing in our sorry world. Some of those things seem to get pushed out of the way by the next worthy cause. Remember those hopeful days that gave birth to the first Earth Day, back on April 22, 1970? According to Earth Day Network, "Earth Day 1970 achieved a rare political alignment, enlisting support from Republicans and Democrats, rich and poor, city slickers and farmers, tycoons and labor leaders. The first Earth Day led to the creation of the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the passage of the Clean Air, Clean Water, and Endangered Species Acts." But it has been 52 years, and all the battles to turn back the damage to the world we live in have come up against resistance. The spirit of the earth is grieving. There are constant new assaults on our environmental well-being. But there are little things we can do to make a difference. I'll let my son, Philip Cole, tell you about what one person can do:
"One of the common refrains we hear about in relation to individuals getting involved in large issues is the oft repeated phrase "what kind of difference can one person make?"
Let me tell you.
Thomas Midgley, Jr. was a chemist who invented TEL. That is tetraethyl lead, which was used as a fuel additive in gasoline until the late 1970s, and is still used in aviation fuel today. TEL, it is theorized, decreased the average IQ of THE ENTIRE UNITED STATES by about 3 points, and was an absolute disaster for the environment.
Not content with one invention, Mr. Midgley went on to invent chlorofluorocarbons, better known as "Freon" or generically: CFCs, which decimated our ozone layer.
Historians refer to him as a one-man environmental disaster.
If one man can decrease the average IQ of an entire country AND destroy the ozone layer, think of what one person can do who is trying to make things better.
Go be the anti Thomas Midgley, Jr. Make a difference for the betterment of all humankind."
Here is a small sampling of the books and DVDs Plymouth Library has to inform us and to encourage easy actions just when we may be feeling like there are too many squirrels fighting for our attention:
We are the weather : saving the planet begins at breakfast / Foer, Jonathan Safran, 636 FOE
Big green purse : use your spending power to create a cleaner, greener world / MacEachern, Diane. 333.72 MAC
Climate church, climate world : how people of faith must work for change / Antal, Jim, 261.88 ANT
Farewell, my Subaru : an epic adventure in local living / Fine, Doug. 333.72092 FIN
Green metropolis : why living smaller, living closer, and driving less are keys to sustainability / Owen, David. 304.209 OWE
Rooted and rising : voices of courage in a time of climate crisis / Schade, Leah D., 201.77 SCH
Vedic ecology: practical wisdom for surviving the 21st century /Prime, Ranchor 294.5 PRI
Preserving the living earth / Petersen, Christine. 577 PET
We rise : the Earth Guardians guide to building a movement that restores the planet / Martinez, Xiuhtezcatl, 363.7 MAR
How to reduce your carbon footprint : 365 simple ways to save energy, resources, and money / Yarrow, Joanna 621.042 YAR
The solution is you! An activist's guide/ David, Laurie 363.7 DAV
My first green book / Wilkes, Angela. J 363.7 WIL
(photo of squirrel by Adam Sanderson)