United Church Speaks
Do church-goers make New Year resolutions? Of course they do! When asked, a friend said that she resolved to show more love and kindness to her friends and family. I’m thinking how we can be more kind and loving towards to our earth.
Many or most of us going to church these days are baby-boomers. We wonder how we can show our children and grandchildren that we care about the legacy we are leaving them. The state of our earth is a growing concern. What can we do? We as consumers have influence. We can teach the younger generations that they have a voice. So we can resolve to show our grandchildren that we care about the earth not only by example, but also by teaching them to speak up more about what we will not tolerate. We have impact and can influence how things are done that affect our earth. We can encourage them to be more verbal, more demanding, stand up for environmentally sound practices.
Beyond recycling, for example, be more outspoken about cutting down on plastic. Here are some small actions that express care for our earth.
-Refuse to buy heavily packaged items and speak to store managers about this and why it’s not to be tolerated.
-Ask for china mugs or paper instead of Styrofoam, usually they are available.
-Carry a cloth reusable bag with you at all times and don’t be shy about it.
So many urbanites are so busy and in a hurry. If they would think before they go shopping they could possibly lose no time making more thoughtful purchases and/or make their wishes known to management. Remember how non-smoking areas developed/ people spoke up. People did not want to tolerate the smoke from smokers and they let they’re voice be heard.
There are myriad small things we can do in caring for our earth, stop idling, carpool, buy local, to mention a few, but it is the underlying commitment to care for our earth the best we can as opposed to being careless. This is a legacy to pass on.
By taking responsibility for the conditions around us and showing that we care for our earth, this is really a way of caring for the next generations, our children and grandchildren. We can not only show by example but also talk about ways to care with our younger generations and in so doing perpetuate a philosophy of hope.
Commitment to caring for our earth is a philosophy of faith. If we all resolve to do a little it will make a difference.
Submitted by Rosemary Manarin.