It’s Monday, and I’m feeling like a holiday. Good thing it’s Earth Day. Many businesses (who still don’t consider Earth Day important enough to make it a paid holiday) are emphasizing being green these days. Really, with global warming proving itself no myth it’s just good business to try to adapt to sustainable practices. Those of us who are vegan find more and more companies offering animal-free options—our dependence on beef is a major environmental hazard. It’s still a challenge finding shoes that aren’t leather based, but things are improving. And more and more hybrids and electric cars are on the roads. We are making progress. We still haven’t, however, gone so far as to declare a day dedicated to preserving our home an official holiday.
I’m not jaded or capitalistic enough to think our only hope is to find off-world parking. To raise the future of humanity elsewhere. It’s just that people fall in line after bullies and bullies only think of themselves. And who, thinking that an afternoon on the links can be counted as work, would consider giving mere employees a day off? A day when we might shut down commuting schedules to save power? A day to rest from the brutality of constant commerce. After all, a typical weekend consists of a day for chores and a day for church. (Still, that is, for many people.) And then back to the office not really feeling refreshed but knowing that you can’t long survive in a pandemic-ridden world without more cash coming into the coffers. Inflation may be going down but grocery prices aren’t.
From NASA’s photo library
" data-orig-size="516,346" sizes="(max-width: 516px) 100vw, 516px" data-image-title="214811main_EarthMoon-516" data-orig-file="https://sawiggins.files.wordpress.com/2012/08/214811main_earthmoon-516.jpg" data-image-description="" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":""}" width="516" data-medium-file="https://sawiggins.files.wordpress.com/2012/08/214811main_earthmoon-516.jpg?w=300" data-permalink="https://steveawiggins.com/2012/08/18/martian-religion/214811main_earthmoon-516/#main" alt="" height="346" srcset="https://sawiggins.files.wordpress.com/2012/08/214811main_earthmoon-516.jpg 516w, https://sawiggins.files.wordpress.com/2012/08/214811main_earthmoon-516.jpg?w=150&h;=101 150w, https://sawiggins.files.wordpress.com/2012/08/214811main_earthmoon-516.jpg?w=300&h;=201 300w" class="wp-image-5140" data-large-file="https://sawiggins.files.wordpress.com/2012/08/214811main_earthmoon-516.jpg?w=516" />From NASA’s photo library (public domain)A day to celebrate home seems like a no-brainer. Especially when it comes on a Monday or Friday. Ah well, we’ll do our best to celebrate it around work, shall we? We’re moving late into April. There’s been a bit of sun mixed in with April showers, as is typical around here on this planet. Days are growing longer and the trees are leafing out. Spring welcomes us back to the outdoors (after work, of course) where green now predominates over brown and gray. While we may not have the day off, we can at least take a moment or two to consider how we might be better to our planet. How we might drive less, use less electricity, generate less waste, spare a few cows. Who knows, it might become a habit? If that were to happen maybe every day would become Earth Day.
