Sometimes things come just when they’re needed. Although it was earlier this month, the Artemis II mission was a celebration of Earth Day. It was also a much needed shot in the arm during difficult times for the environment. Human arrogance is quite often checked by nature. The series of very hot April days followed by extraordinarily cold April days reminded us around here that nature is firmly in charge. Our comfort, or expectations, are secondary to the vast world around us. And we love our world for it. We are guests here and we couldn’t survive without it. We may set up a base on the moon or Mars, but such places will still rely on our home. It helps that those who’ve ventured further away than humans have ever gone sent back photos to remind us of how small we are on a fairly small planet. Pictures of home.
FD06_high priority pao
" data-orig-size="1920,1280" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" data-image-title="FD06_high priority pao" data-orig-file="https://steveawiggins.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/earthset_art002e009288.jpg" data-image-description="" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"FD06_high priority pao","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"FD06_high priority pao","orientation":"0","alt":""}" width="1024" data-comments-opened="1" data-permalink="https://steveawiggins.com/2026/04/22/a-day-for-earth/fd06_high-priority-pao/#main" alt="" height="682" srcset="https://steveawiggins.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/earthset_art002e009288.jpg?w=1024 1024w, https://steveawiggins.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/earthset_art002e009288.jpg?w=150 150w, https://steveawiggins.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/earthset_art002e009288.jpg?w=300 300w, https://steveawiggins.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/earthset_art002e009288.jpg?w=768 768w, https://steveawiggins.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/earthset_art002e009288.jpg?w=1440 1440w, https://steveawiggins.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/earthset_art002e009288.jpg 1920w" class="wp-image-26636" data-large-file="https://steveawiggins.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/earthset_art002e009288.jpg?w=1020" />Photo credit: NASA, public domain, FD06_high priority paoFrom our daily perspective it’s difficult to believe that outer space surrounds us. We’re so caught up with our own little problems, generally of our own making. I write this after a day of shivering in a chilly house as electricians replaced the breaker box and the conduit, from service head to basement mounting. It was a sunny day but temperatures hadn’t really recovered after a nighttime low in the twenties. I reflected on how much we’ve come to rely on being able to shut nature out. How difficult it would be to survive without shelter, and a little heat. With the electricity off the furnace didn’t know to kick on, and windows had to be open to snake wires through. For all the wonders of a household electrical system, the Earth itself is so complex we are still only beginning to understand how it works. We love it. We fear it.
Our dependence on things we’ve constructed makes me feel fragile sometimes. When we first noticed our electrical issues I walked to a local shop run by an Earth-loving owner to see if their power was out too. “Water and electricity,” she said, “are the two things we can’t do without at home.” She was correct. We rely on the grid. Nature could take us with both hands behind its back. As the replacement process stretched beyond the scheduled finish time, I had visions of a cold night without power. No way to cook dinner, no way to keep food safe in the fridge. I thought of astronauts a quarter-million miles from home, protected by a shell made here on Earth. And looking back to lovingly snap a photo for Earth Day.
