i think that if there were a perfect time of year for earth day to occur, a day for us to celebrate the earth (inasmuch as you could only limit it to one day), the middle of april might be it.

especially in the northern states, this is a time of year that yanks us in many directions. march may be cold; it may be warm; it’s always drab but slushy. may is almost always at least mostly warm and gloriously green. march makes us mad. may makes us happy. but april? april is hope.

i think that’s how i feel right now about our place in the earth at this moment in time.

this morning i got an email from my mom that outlines native philosophies toward humans’ relationship with the earth around us. while i’ve always hammered on “we are stewards of the earth,” i like kciye a lot better: harmony with the natural world.

it’s not enough to know that we a part of the world and all its habitants; we need to actively take steps to live in harmony with all creation. meaning, we can’t see ourselves as being greater than or above the land, water, animals. instead of keepers of the earth, we need to be keepers of an attitude that is in harmony, a part of a living whole.

i recently read “neither wolf nor dog” by kent nerburn, about a white man’s journey with a native elder. it was a wonderful book and i’d recommend it to everyone, but one thing he explained really made me take a moment to assess my biases.

one of the things kent didn’t understand is why native people kept broken stuff in their yards. why not clean it up? why not just clear it out? because native people use everything (like when killing buffalo), and this applies to inanimate objects as well. done driving a truck into the ground? well, the dog likes to use it as a bed, so it sits in the yard. just because the items they use has changed doesn’t mean their philosophy around use has changed.

this way of life, of course, means humans have a lot of work to do. we especially good at thinking we’re the best, and even within our own species we have issues with this.

but like i said, i’m feeling a little hopeful right now. maybe it’s because it’s spring. maybe it’s because i picked up my garden seeds last weekend. or maybe because there are some things moving in the right direction that i’ve been seeing lately.

• there seems to be a lot more resources being pumping into electric vehicles.
• as a nation, we’re back on some level of handling climate change.
• i’ve been noticing more and more products promoting plastic-free packaging. (speaking of that, i have to review the items i’ve been using plastic-free.)
• while i’m not partaking, the more people working from home means fewer cars on the roads spewing out CO2.
• more and more solar farms are popping up around me (and i’ve got a share! woo!)

i know there is a lot more going on, but if we keep pushing corps to do their part, our individual actions, as minimal as they seem (and are), won’t be in vain. keep making a ruckus, people. keep that april-esque vibe alive.