I’m MAD

I just spent a week with my 28-year-old son in northern California, talking with him and many of his friends.

And I’m MAD!

I’m mad because I came home to a mailbox full of junk mail.

I’m mad because I saw hundreds of empty pop cans being tossed out on the plane.

I’m mad because of the plastic pull tab on the mustard I bought that will some day end up on the beach in Hawaii, no matter how diligently I try to recycle.

And I’m mad because we aren’t taking the necessary changes to help stop the destruction of our home planet.

And, even more so, I’m SAD.

I’m sad for all the young people struggling with the knowledge that life on earth is going to get harder and harder, because their elders didn’t have the guts or the will to change their way of life.

At age 59, I can remember better times.

I remember when forest fires didn’t plague the summer air. Every year, now, we have smoke up and down the west coast as forests and towns burn to the ground in the oppressive heat. As I write, fires are raging around the world. Sadly, the loss of tree life from these flames contributes to the ever-increasing heat and reduction of earth’s natural, healing water cycle. Climate change is accelerating.

I remember when one could gather clams or catch fish and crab easily year-round. Now, our oceans are so severely depleted that their food production, as well as their important role in moderating atmospheric carbon and oxygen levels, has become dangerously impacted.

I remember when, in my early twenties, the future looked bright and hopeful. I planned to travel the world, have an amazing career, raise a family, live to a happy and ripe old age.

The twenty-somethings I spoke with don’t have this same hope.

They see the rapidly approaching time when large parts of earth will become uninhabitable due to extreme heat. They know that people will migrate from these areas, seeking places that can provide shelter and food.

They see, already, the nationalist mentality that wants to keep these refugees out, at any cost, including wars and walls, both of which simply cause more eco-destruction and carbon foot-stomping. They know that the powers-that-be are blinded by greed and self-interest, with little care for future generations.

I wrote an article recently about how my hope rests in the millennials to change our world. However, my heart aches to think that they may be too late, that their elders have already squandered their inheritance for short-sighted, materialistic gains. I am sad to see these beautiful, caring, wise young people begin to lose hope in their own bright futures.

And then I get mad, again. And I think, IT HAS TO STOP!

There are a hundred painless things we can stop NOW to benefit our world:

1. Stop using plastic for everything (from water bottles to clothing tags to bags to the wraps that go on everything we buy).

2. Stop buying stuff you don’t need, and start re-using the stuff you have (using jars as glasses, towels that don’t match, socks that are scruffy, and second-hand furniture will not diminish the quality of your life, I promise!)

3. Stop the earth-destructive practices of meat-heavy food production and planet-destroying agricultural practices (deforestation, mono-crops, and killing of soil and insects with pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers).

4. Shop local and eat local (reduce world-wide shipping impacts).

5. Stop junk mail (“Discover” should be fined for all the promo mail they send me!)

6. Disband all companies that make non-beneficial products. Okay, I realize this is a big one but, seriously, would anyone’s life be detrimentally impacted if Coca Cola (and all the soda pop manufacturers) ceased to exist? What else could we easily (and to our health benefit) live without? McDonalds (and other fast foods)? Mass-produced, diabetes-inducing sugar snacks (that line every aisle of the grocery stores)? Discover credit cards? The list could go on and on. In fact, I encourage you, dear reader, to join with friends and make lists of your own. Change starts with awareness.(NOTE: For people who work in these industries, know that the future lies in green jobs. It is imperative that we create more green-job opportunities hand-in-hand with the removal of destructive industries).

7. Stop the mass industrial fishing that is depleting our oceans, and thereby escalating all aspects of climate change.

8. Stop thinking about what’s best for “me” and make every action about what is best for “all” — Wise elders of some tribes refuse to act unless they have considered the ramifications of their actions on the next 7 generations. Unfortunately, our elders have not cared about anything but immediate profit and personal gain.

I just spent a week with my 28-year-old son in northern California, talking with him and many of his friends.

And I’m MAD!

I’m mad because I came home to a mailbox full of junk mail.

I’m mad because I saw hundreds of empty pop cans being tossed out on the plane.

I’m mad because of the plastic pull tab on the mustard I bought that will some day end up on the beach in Hawaii, no matter how diligently I try to recycle.

And I’m mad because we aren’t taking the necessary changes to help stop the destruction of our home planet.

And, even more so, I’m SAD.

I’m sad for all the young people struggling with the knowledge that life on earth is going to get harder and harder, because their elders didn’t have the guts or the will to change their way of life.

At age 59, I can remember better times.

I remember when forest fires didn’t plague the summer air. Every year, now, we have smoke up and down the west coast as forests and towns burn to the ground in the oppressive heat. As I write, fires are raging around the world. Sadly, the loss of tree life from these flames contributes to the ever-increasing heat and reduction of earth’s natural, healing water cycle. Climate change is accelerating.

I remember when one could gather clams or catch fish and crab easily year-round. Now, our oceans are so severely depleted that their food production, as well as their important role in moderating atmospheric carbon and oxygen levels, has become dangerously impacted.

I remember when, in my early twenties, the future looked bright and hopeful. I planned to travel the world, have an amazing career, raise a family, live to a happy and ripe old age.

The twenty-somethings I spoke with don’t have this same hope.

They see the rapidly approaching time when large parts of earth will become uninhabitable due to extreme heat. They know that people will migrate from these areas, seeking places that can provide shelter and food.

They see, already, the nationalist mentality that wants to keep these refugees out, at any cost, including wars and walls, both of which simply cause more eco-destruction and carbon foot-stomping. They know that the powers-that-be are blinded by greed and self-interest, with little care for future generations.

I wrote an article recently about how my hope rests in the millennials to change our world. However, my heart aches to think that they may be too late, that their elders have already squandered their inheritance for short-sighted, materialistic gains. I am sad to see these beautiful, caring, wise young people begin to lose hope in their own bright futures.

And then I get mad, again. And I think, IT HAS TO STOP!

There are a hundred painless things we can stop NOW to benefit our world:

1. Stop using plastic for everything (from water bottles to clothing tags to bags to the wraps that go on everything we buy).

2. Stop buying stuff you don’t need, and start re-using the stuff you have (using jars as glasses, towels that don’t match, socks that are scruffy, and second-hand furniture will not diminish the quality of your life, I promise!)

3. Stop the earth-destructive practices of meat-heavy food production and planet-destroying agricultural practices (deforestation, mono-crops, and killing of soil and insects with pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers).

4. Shop local and eat local (reduce world-wide shipping impacts).

5. Stop junk mail (“Discover” should be fined for all the promo mail they send me!)

6. Disband all companies that make non-beneficial products. Okay, I realize this is a big one but, seriously, would anyone’s life be detrimentally impacted if Coca Cola (and all the soda pop manufacturers) ceased to exist? What else could we easily (and to our health benefit) live without? McDonalds (and other fast foods)? Mass-produced, diabetes-inducing sugar snacks (that line every aisle of the grocery stores)? Discover credit cards? The list could go on and on. In fact, I encourage you, dear reader, to join with friends and make lists of your own. Change starts with awareness.(NOTE: For people who work in these industries, know that the future lies in green jobs. It is imperative that we create more green-job opportunities hand-in-hand with the removal of destructive industries).

7. Stop the mass industrial fishing that is depleting our oceans, and thereby escalating all aspects of climate change.

8. Stop thinking about what’s best for “me” and make every action about what is best for “all” — Wise elders of some tribes refuse to act unless they have considered the ramifications of their actions on the next 7 generations. Unfortunately, our elders have not cared about anything but immediate profit and personal gain.

Itis time for this to stop, and it’s going to take all of us to make happen, or there may not be another 7 generations.

I hope you, too, have enough sadness & enough madness to help institute change.

Some of the above things you can start, immediately, on your own, with minimal sacrifice.

Some are mass societal changes that you can start promoting and supporting. Change starts with awareness.

We don’t have a lot of time, but if we all start NOW, perhaps there is still hope for us, and for future generations.

— — —

In closing, I encourage you to START a few things:

Start viewing all of life as a gift, and develop a habit of gratitude: Be grateful for the trees that gave their life to make the house you live in. Be grateful for the plants that gave freely to create the salad or pizza you consume. Be grateful for the birds and bats and bugs that create balance in our air and earth. Be grateful for the trees and bushes, and weeds even, that contribute oxygen to the air that you breathe. Be grateful for your neighbors and do everything you can to support them as individuals instead of supporting the faceless, profit-motivated corporations of our current Commodity Economy.

When you see all of life as a gift, you naturally want to give back, effortlessly creating a Gift Economy. Unlike a money-based Commodity Economy, a Gift Economy creates a healthy cycle of reciprocity and responsibility where we care about our planet and all its people (including the animal and plant people) and give freely back and forth for the good of all.

And this is my hope:

May you go forth in loving-kindness for all,

May you work toward creating a vibrant new way of living life as a gift,

May you, personally, help bring peace and prosperity for the next 7+7+7 generations.

It is time for this to stop, and it’s going to take all of us to make happen, or there may not be another 7 generations.

I hope you, too, have enough sadness & enough madness to help institute change.

Some of the above things you can start, immediately, on your own, with minimal sacrifice.

Some are mass societal changes that you can start promoting and supporting. Change starts with awareness.

We don’t have a lot of time, but if we all start NOW, perhaps there is still hope for us, and for future generations.

— — —

In closing, I encourage you to START a few things:

Start viewing all of life as a gift, and develop a habit of gratitude: Be grateful for the trees that gave their life to make the house you live in. Be grateful for the plants that gave freely to create the salad or pizza you consume. Be grateful for the birds and bats and bugs that create balance in our air and earth. Be grateful for the trees and bushes, and weeds even, that contribute oxygen to the air that you breathe. Be grateful for your neighbors and do everything you can to support them as individuals instead of supporting the faceless, profit-motivated corporations of our current Commodity Economy.

When you see all of life as a gift, you naturally want to give back, effortlessly creating a Gift Economy. Unlike a money-based Commodity Economy, a Gift Economy creates a healthy cycle of reciprocity and responsibility where we care about our planet and all its people (including the animal and plant people) and give freely back and forth for the good of all.

And this is my hope:

May you go forth in loving-kindness for all,

May you work toward creating a vibrant new way of living life as a gift,

May you, personally, help bring peace and prosperity for the next 7+7+7 generations.