For over thirty years, I’ve breathed earth’s air, whether crisp and clean in country areas, or choked with smog, in clogged cities. Its water, not always sparkling, has refreshed me on many a scorching day. Its food from tree or vine or soil has nourished and filled my occasionally grumbling stomach to finger-licking satisfaction. The wide variety of flora and fauna has caused my breath to catch in my throat in wonder, and enlarged the horizons of my mind to learn and soak up a knowledge, not found in books, that they have to offer.
So, it is with gratitude that I’m compelled to honour this earth each and every day, which, like a mother, has sustained me all the days that I have walked upon its surface. Often, I have taken it for granted, neglected its care, wasted its abundance. I’ve witnessed its rape, the callous treatment meted out to it, the greed that has devoured its now dwindling resources and almost bled it dry. Heard its groans as it shuddered out its agony, deep below its surface, while we cowered in fear above, unaware that we may have had a share in what has contributed to its tumult and slow decline.
My wake-up call, however, did not happen amidst some cataclysmic event that shocked me to my senses. It occurred quietly sometime ago, without fanfare, when, like the lighting of a butterfly upon a flower, or the seeping of rich hues into the bland sky, I had an aha! moment, an awakening to the interconnectedness between myself and another human soul and Nature and this earth. I strongly believe that when we are out of sync with ourselves and each other, when that thread that binds us all together is severed, a similar disconnection happens between ourselves and the earth, one that is reflected in the upheavals that we read or hear about in the news, or witness almost daily in the society and throughout the world. What, then, is the earth saying to you and me when it shudders and heaves, belches out fire and floods, or stirs up angry winds to toss our flimsy possessions around as if they were mere toys? Are we even listening?
What will it take for us to start honouring that which sustains us?
One of the ways in which Jamaica will be playing its part is via the Natural History Museum of Jamaica and the 10th staging of its annual Earth Day Essay, Poster, and Photography competition awards ceremony today at the Institute of Jamaica Lecture Hall, where the work of several students will be recognised for their entries on the theme, “Global Warning: Natural Disasters Ahead.”
For those who are actively caring for our home planet, continue to do so. Otherwise, start honouring the earth in small ways, if you haven’t already. Start today, now. Just start. The rest will follow.
7 Comments
April 24, 2009 at 3:59 pm
We all need to take care of this planet, after all it takes care of us by keeping us alive. Good post Jamaican Dawta.
May 3, 2009 at 2:48 pm
Hi, good post. I have been thinking about this issue,so thanks for sharing. I’ll certainly be coming back to your site.