I grew up in New York City and Astoria. My green was the occasional tree and visits to Central Park. My wild animals were the occasional squirrel and pigeons. I had little connection to the earth. My mother grew up on a farm in the former Yugoslavia, happily planting herself in a city with no green around her. I never thought anything of my desire to be around nature until I lived in Florida.
When I was twenty, I moved to Amelia Island, a small tourist town that you could drive across in fifteen minutes. I loved going outside and smelling the ocean (when it didn't smell like a local factory), and admiring all of the tropical plants around me. I was still not accustomed to nature, when within a month, I called maintenance to escort an iguana out of my apartment. (Of course they laughed and told me to shoo it outside with a broom. Which I did, freaking out the entire time.)
This past weekend, my family and I visited my in-laws farm settled in a small town outside of Ottawa. The weather was pleasant and I made my way around the grounds. I saw more animals this year than I had in year's past. As we neared the border to Canada, a wild turkey was strutting across the highway knowing it had all the right to do what it wanted. (Canada had introduced wild turkeys into my husband's family's town about ten years ago and did a big push with turkeys in Ontario in the 1980's). Crossing onto the American side, I don't think that turkey knew it would have less pedestrian-friendly drivers on that side of the border. At the farm, I saw an entire flock owning several acres of land, grazing.
We looked at the renovated slope down to the creek my father-in-law had been working on for years when I came across a turtle coming up the side. My husband said they usually make their way up the hill to lay their eggs (unfortunately sometimes on the driveway where they have to be moved). Later on, as I sat watching the stillness of the creek, staring at an old beaver dam, when a beaver left the edge of the water several feet away from me, paddling with it's tail like an Olympic swimmer. A little while later still, I saw my first muskrat swim here and there as fast as its body would move it. It was a weekend of first animal sightings.
I sit here tonight, the eve of Earth Day, my Robin stalker watching me as I type away, thinking about all of the marvels nature has given us. Miracles are in the Aurora Borealis, the life that regrows each spring, waterfalls, the cries of baby birds high in their nests wanting their next meal.
Aside from admiring all of these wonders, Earth Day is also a time to think about how we impact our environment every day. There are pockets of water in the Gulf of Mexico (and even close by in the Chesapeake Bay) where the algae is so plentiful due to pollution pouring in. Aside from the algae, nothing else can live there. This one in particular is larger than the size of Connecticut. (http://www.nbcnews.com/science/science-news/gulf-mexico-dead-zone-size-connecticut-f6C10798946) (For a brief video, check out http://oceantoday.noaa.gov/happnowdeadzone/. Note nutrients is referring to pesticides, fungicides, and chemical fertilizers.)
There is "Garbage Island" (also known as Great Pacific Garbage Patch) in the Pacific Ocean which is 7 million square miles. Some reports indicate it is the twice the size of the U.S.A. Since the garbage area is between countries, no one will claim the right to clean-up this part of the ocean. (http://education.nationalgeographic.com/education/encyclopedia/great-pacific-garbage-patch/?ar_a=1)
Meanwhile, animals ingest plastics, medical supplies, and other trash, misidentifying it for food leading to the death of many animals.
Plus, we have the North Pole, once cold and supporting the life of arctic animals like polar bears, beluga whales, walrus'. Now, their home is warming at unprecedented rates where ice banks melt and starvation is becoming more common.
When we see pollution in our own backyard, we take action. What we don't see, we ignore. Put a landfill in your neighborhood, and suddenly you would attend a council meeting to object to its installation. What we need to do is realize that sometimes, especially if you are fortunate, you cannot see environmental devastation in your own backyard. They may not be in your backyard, but they are in someones. Long term, they will effect your lifestyle.
We forget that everything we do, consume and purchase has an impact on the globe. From the clothes we wear, to the food we eat; from the household cleaners we use to the paint we color our walls with; from the way we recycle (or don't) to our bags at checkout; all of these impact our world.
"Make Earth Day, Every Day," is a common quote people see plastered this time of year. As I finish this thought, my neighbor is spraying pesticides along our fence line. I grumble as I call my Yorkie back from the fence. I realize how important it is to make sure every day is Earth Day, and to continue to share the message in hopes that we care for the earth as she cares for us. The earth gives us so much everyday-food, shelter, breathable air, water. When will we learn to live in harmony and if possible, give back?
