Often times when I am out gardening I think about what it would be like if more of us were doing it. What it will be like. Imagine a neighborhood full of people out planting in their yards. Neighbors chatting and laughing while they plant fruit trees. Imagine yards full of food producing trees, instead of waste producing lawns. Imagine pears in the summer, cherries in the spring, citrus in the winter, apples in the fall. Or some other variation, in your own yard! Imagine people taking back some part of our own food production. Imagine spending our time and money making the world a more beautiful, healthy place instead of creating more waste. Imagine us using our power to green the environment instead of the pockets of already huge and wealthy corporations. Imagine the contentment that can come from more beautiful, lush and edible spaces. Planting oxygen producing, nitrogen fixing, air filtering plants and trees. Imagine the feelings of satisfaction when you create an environment for butterflies, birds, frogs and lizards. Imagine more and more of us doing it. Yard after yard offered back to the natural world.
We are all responsible for the destruction to our environment, to our society. With our greed, naievety, stupidity and inattention, we are all to blame. But we are so much stronger then that. And it is time to start the the process of healing our earth and ourselves. I remember a friend saying we could keep driving our cars if we kept planting trees. As in any healthy relationship it cant be all take and no give.
My mind is boggled by those who continue to deny climate change. By those who believe we can continue to pollute the air and ground, de-forest the land, pump chemicals and sewage into the water and not have a negative impact. Its common sense folks. We cant have a balanced relationship with the earth if its all take and no give. Plant, garden, buy less, want less. Be the change. The earth is amazing. We are amazing. We can heal our planet, and ourselves. Start now. Give and take folks, give and take.
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Hi Kristen,
ReplyDeleteI love your blog and this post, in particular, really struck a chord in me.
I would really like to be more a part of the solution rather than the problem and i have made some changes in my life to simplify. what I would really like to do is start planting in my yard but i have always shied away from it because i haven't ever been successful even keeping a house plant alive! But I am going to do it and i wonder if you know of any resources (books, web sites etc) that might be of help to a beginner!
Thanks so much - you are an inspiration!
Lyn
Hi Kristin,
ReplyDeleteBeautiful thoughts. I think you might be onto something here…More than just something… A song! We can call it “Imagine”… Something like “Imagine all the people…” Naaa – it would never catch on! :-)
I’m so glad you decided to step out of one life and into another. (“Two roads diverged in a life…I chose the one less traveled by…”) Keep those great thoughts and actions coming. People like you (and maybe even me?) make a difference.
Enjoy your Thanksgiving with your children and loved ones! (Sooo much to be thankful for and so and much possibility!)
Mark
See it, Feel it, Vision it, Do it.
ReplyDeleteMark, 'You may say Im a dreamer, but Im not the only one.' Thanks man! We all make a difference.
Lyn, Just keep trying. Get out there and do it. Go to local, independent garden centers, the people there are generally very knowledgeable. Find out what grows well in your area, what keeps coming back. Check out local gardening groups, and plant sales. They often have meetups. Be patient. Ive had and continue to have, many failures. And Im just finally finding some indoor plants that work well for us (courtesy of outdoor plant propagation). Good luck.
"See it, VISION it, Do it"... Dreamers and visionaries are cut from the same material, aren't they???
ReplyDeleteI do believe you "aren't" the only one! There's at least two of us! Yea, for dreamers! (and doers)
@Lynda...This publication ( motherearthnews.com) sometimes has some good ideas and information. They have been around for many years.
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