What Earth Day means to me - Books by Eric Douglas

It seems like everything got green over the weekend. Flowers were out before that, of course, and the grass was growing (I mowed my grass for the first time last Tuesday. Many of my neighbors were on their second cutting and I’m sure they were looking at me wondering why I hadn’t mowed yet, but that’s a different discussion.) Still, this past weekend, it seemed like the earth finally shook off the last vestiges of winter and spring took hold—my apologies to those of you reading this who live to the north and are still struggling to kick winter to the curb.

Spring comes with a renewed sense of joy and excitement. The birds and the squirrels are chasing each other around the yard; two different bird families are growing on the same ladder leaning against our house, as a matter of fact. We’re calling it the birdie condo as one nest is on the top step and the second is on the third step.

It’s fitting, then, that Earth Day should come lock step after this green-up. While we’ve done a lot to care for the earth in recent decades it seems like we still have a lot of work to do. The river that runs through my hometown is dramatically cleaner than it was when I was a kid. The air is much better, too. I don’t hear anyone talk about the Kanawha crud any more—the coughing/wheezing you got from whatever the chemical plants were burning off into the atmosphere. Those are good things.

I still vividly recall the commercial from my childhood that featured a Native American standing beside the road, crying at the sight of litter thrown at his feet. While it doesn’t seem to be as bad as it used to be, there is still litter on the ground. You even see it in the “protected” areas and back country trails. That astounds me. As a diver, it really drives me crazy to see litter underwater. This is a perfect example of “Out of Sight, Out of Mind.” If you throw trash overboard from your boat, you never see it again. I wrote about that last year in this blog. And every time the water gets up after a rain, the amount of trash left on the river banks is astounding.

Last weekend, I spent time in the mountains of Pocahontas County, West Virginia with friends. Most of the county is within the Monongahela National Forest. Still there were beer bottles and soda cans on trails that people could only get to by hiking or riding four wheel drive vehicles. We were all frustrated by the sight of the trash. Pack out whatever you pack in. In the diving world, we say, “Take only pictures and leave only bubbles.”

The group Keep America Beautiful that created the Native American commercial is still out there doing good work.

Politically, the “green” movement has always suffered from stigmas. People who wanted to care for the earth were considered radicals and tree huggers. They were placed on the opposite side of most debates from corporations and people who thought environmentalists wanted to take care of trees before people. Today this has boiled down to an argument of “liberal” versus “conservative”. Ironically, many “conservatives” I know are religious people who like to get out in the woods to hunt, fish and enjoy nature. As a Christian, I know it is my responsibility to be a good steward of the planet and I suspect every other major religion in the world says the same thing.

This would seem to be a place where everyone can agree. “Liberals” who want to be green. “Conservatives” who enjoy nature. Christians and people of every faith who want to obey God. I understand that there are different approaches and we all have different ideas on what we should do, I think sometimes we forget to acknowledge that common ground first. After that, everything should be easy. Honestly, if we would take care of the little things, like litter, I think we would have an easier time with the big issues.

I am really inspired by a man I interviewed earlier this year for the Voices of War project. (Major Richard) Ritchie Ojeda is working his tail off and giving his time to clean up Logan County, his home. He is disgusted by the trash and rundown homes. Instead of giving up on it, he is doing something about it and getting those around him motivated to do the same. We should all follow that example.

Taking care of the world around us shouldn’t be an issue of Liberal or Conservative. We all share this world and it is the only one we have.