Report From PIA – March 27
I have to get this posted fairly quickly, because in thirty minutes it will be Earth Hour, and I will turn off my laptop and all of the lights in the house. My husband jokingly asked if we could use our computers on battery, and I shook my head. We’ll light candles and enjoy each other’s company, forgoing anything that requires power for at least one hour.
The theme of this day for me is personal action, it seems. I rehearsed with the WomanSpirit group from my church this afternoon, as we prepared the service for tomorrow. We are honoring Carolyn McDade, composter of two of my favorite hymns. She might not call them hymns, but I do since there is something holy about Spirit of Life and We’ll Build A Land.
These two events, Earth Hour and the service celebrating Carolyn McDade come together with gardening I think. When we garden, we do what we can. The weather is out of our control, weed seeds lay dormant, waiting to sprout for over fifty years, and our type of soil may not support the plants we want to grow. Still, we cope with that which we have no power over, and we cultivate to our best abilities.
I don’t have the capability to reverse global warming quickly, but I can turn my lights out for an hour tonight. In doing so, I connect with others around the world (think of that, around the world!) who also deeply care about the future of this blue planet.
Reversing injustice is beyond my personal jurisdiction, but I can gather with others to affirm and celebrate justice through prayer and song. And in the garden I can make good choices, forgoing products that harm wildlife or work against natural processes. In this I join with gardeners throughout history and the world, as we unite to cherish the land.
We may not have the power to instantly reverse environmental damage or other wrongs, but that doesn’t mean that we don’t have the responsibility to do what we can. We are gardeners, and we can always plant wisely.
