Many of us cannot remember a time before there was Earth Day. Senator Gaylord Nelson held the first one in 1970 as a grassroots demonstration to increase awareness of environmental issues, and it has been a tradition ever since. We grew up with at least some foundation of ecological consciousness in our lives and were taught simple things like not to waste water and to recycle.
I grew up in a small town of about 2,000 people in the Flint Hills of Kansas. People there are pretty traditional, as you might expect, and were definitely not ecologically minded at that time. I was always a bit of a rebel and tried to provoke change around me.
In the fifth grade, I convinced my teacher it would be a good idea for my entire grade to take on a class project related to waste and recycling. We spent one Saturday picking up garbage along a highway and around the federal reservoir outside our town. At first the other kids were mad they were being asked to give up a Saturday morning to get filthy dirty and touch the disgusting stuff rude people leave along the side of the road. Many parents joined in to help us out and keep us safe, and it actually turned out to be a lot of fun. I was so relieved. We sorted through the garbage we collected to determine what items could be recycled and took a field trip to the recycling center to see how our items would be handled. It was a really cool experience for all of us, and a great way to get out of a day of school.
Me being me, though, I decided to take it further. I signed my 4-H Club up for the federal adopt a highway project. They, too, were less than enthusiastic about taking on this task, but also found that it was actually a pretty fun way to do something good for our community and the planet. I’m proud to say that project continues to this day, many years later.
With the success of those projects under my belt, I got up the courage to start a recycling program in my small town. With the help of my parents and my 4-H group leaders, I petitioned the city council for funding for the program. With their assistance, I started a monthly drop off program for residents to leave their recyclables. My club members and I sorted through the items, and I arranged for a recycling business to come to our town from a larger nearby city to take away what we collected. In thinking back, I’m incredibly suprised at the response we had from town residents. But at that time, I never doubted the program would be successful. I was so determined and idealistic that I just knew it would work.
Somewhere along the way, though, I started to grow up and lost some of my enthusiasm for saving the earth. I still played the hippie role just fine, but most of my interests revolved around shopping at thrift stores and enjoying Mary Jane with my friends.
As so often happens, though, life brought me full circle. I have had migraines since I was six years old, but in the fall of 2003, they became debilitating in their intensity and frequency. I tried many, many conventional medical interventions for preventing my migraines and managing my disease, but had no success. Slowly, but surely, I began to explore more natural treatments and strategies for healing my body.
In addition to massage and acupuncture treatments, I began to eat more organic and natural foods and pay closer attention to what I put in my body. I switched to safer cleaning and personal hygiene products. And somewhere along the way, I began to feel a strong desire to incorporate other behavioral changes in my life that, while not so directly related to my health, do my soul good, such as eschewing plastic grocery bags, recycling again and curbing my consumption.
Being a good steward of the earth is an important aspect of my life once again. Though it isn’t always easy to bend to the ecological and health impact of my choices, I’m glad my situation brought those considerations back to the forefront for me. It is one of the only silver linings I can find, and I’m holding on to it for dear life.
Part two of my thoughts on Earth Day will detail a list of suggestions for small changes you can make in your own life, so look for it Sunday and consider what you can do to make a difference.
Source: History of Earth Day
Lawyerlee
I never got to go on a cool field trip like that
You’ve always been strong willed