Earth Day Everyday: A simple guide

Respect, Honor, Protect

Conserve, Preserve, Restore

In her book, Braiding Sweetgrass, Robin Wall Kimmerer laments the perception people have of the earth. That, when asked, students described the relationship we have with our planet as largely negative: pollution, brownfields, ubiquitous plastic.

Which is, frankly, depressing.

Indigenous people that have managed to keep their stories intact tell a different story. A story of reciprocity, of giving and receiving, of both the child and the mother.

My ancestor’s ancestors had shared a similar story.

One where we honored where we lived, every day rising with gratitude for the gifts bestowed:

Food. Water. Shelter.

A sumptuous berry found in the bush.

The bounty of a hunter who feeds the entire village. 

Sacred, life giving water.

This is a stark cry from today’s world of convenience, faster, more.

My invitation for you today, and every day, is to find the spaces where you can slow down, show gratitude. Get outside, notice the beauty around you.

Listen to the bird song.

Smell the flower.

Find a body of water and revel in the feeling you get from simply watching it.

Feel how your day shifts.

How will you honor thy mother, and therefore thyself, today?