Earth Day in the time of pandemic

photo credit: https://unsplash.com/@edwinhooper

with millions of people around the world “sheltering in place,” we are not gathering in the ways we usually do for this annual event. but there is something deeply thought-provoking, even reassuring, about not being able to do that today. for those of us who have enjoyed the privileges (usually unacknowledged and assumed) of “normalcy” for far too long, we are being given a unique opportunity to reassess everything about our way of life. if we can be awake to the moment.

it’s an Earth Day like no other.

for most people around the globe, Earth Day probably doesn’t really mean much at all. it’s likely seen as yet another “white people feeling better about themselves” day which, although, full of great intentions and often really great actions, still hasn’t addressed the fundamental problem that we are still in the midst of a great crisis when it comes to the health of our home and the very real possibility of human extinction. with clearer skies and waters, this pandemic has certainly shown us what is possible in terms of healing our planet. but we have a long way to go in turning ourselves away from climate catastrophe.

yes, this is is real. yes, so many healthcare workers are being stretched beyond anything they should have to deal with. yes, millions are jobless, stressed and hungry- reminiscent of the Great Depression 90 years ago. yes, people are dying- especially black and brown people, people who are too often excluded from conversations that could actually be helpful in every area of human existence. and, yet, there is also so much we don’t know about this situation.

the truth is- this is not black and white. nothing is. there is a lot of grey area in much of what’s happening right now. and the thing is, people are uncomfortable with grey- at least us white folks are. we’re uncomfortable with not having pat answers for things and with thinking for ourselves.

there seems to be a deeper agenda at hand.

media often serves only to fan the flames of fear and uncertainly while sending mixed messages about everything from numbers to causes and solutions. politicians can easily take advantage of a situation like this. while we align ourselves with one party or the other and demonize the opposition, pitted against each other for toilet paper and masks, a group of corporate and governmental elites wags the dog’s tail for its own benefit under the guise of benefit for all. the things that really matter - like the very real and growing climate and social justice crises - are conveniently swept under the rug. to what end?

this is not political, partisan, Republicans vs. Democrats. that’s what they want us to believe, but the truth is we’ve been duped. this is by design. it’s about power, money and control. and, honestly, it’s a rabbit hole. a very deep one. in the big picture, i cannot control these people. nor will i (or any of us) likely ever know for sure what really goes on behind the closed doors of our so-called democracy.

it does make me wonder, though- what and who can we trust?

we can trust ourselves, our deep intuition. not our fear or our stories of lack and loneliness, but the stillness which lives in each of us when we get quiet. we have an unprecedented opportunity to do that right now. so, i take a deep breath... and let it out with a sigh. tears flow as i let myself feel the overwhelming grief of so much loss. so much fear flying around the world. and i know, deep in my bones, this is just a fraction of the loss and fear we will experience if we don’t put our attention where it needs to go.

we can trust the feelings which lie just under the sensations of survival. not the shallow breaths, the hunched shoulders, the tight jaw, but the tears of grief- not for the things we can explain, like the loss of our jobs or our inability to shop and buy the things we think we need. but for the things we can’t explain- like how we got here and what we stand to lose if we don’t change everything about our way of living.

we can trust them because they speak of a Great Buried Love for Life on Earth, even if we have become accustomed to something so wholly unearthly in this capitalist CULTure we have inherited and perpetuated. we can trust the anger of our brown and black brothers and sisters when they say, “where have you been all this time?” and we can trust the emptiness we are opening to as we sit alone in our homes, realizing that this is not what we wanted but that it may be exactly what we need.

so, what do we want? really?

underneath all the stuff and the running around and the busyness and distraction, what is the moment we can be awake to - each one of us - right now? what can we melt into and let go of, especially, those of us who have benefitted (i.e. white folks like me) from this wholly unworkable project we call life in the U.S.? what can we honor and repair? where can we make amends and true reparations? how can we use this precious opportunity to actually take a look at what’s possible?

i suggest we put our attention on the things that matter right here, right now. to feel the Earth breathing a small sigh of relief that we humans are less active than we were a couple of months ago. skies are clearer. waters are cleaner. even if this is just a blip in the long arc of nature’s justice. consider that this is a chance to turn inward, to slow down, to breathe more deeply. a chance to listen to the ancient wisdom of our indigenous relatives. an opportunity to bring them to the table and give them our seats. an opening to relinquish that which has never served us and reclaim the only thing which ever does – our connection to our hearts, to each other and to this Earth.

what we have before us is an opportunity never go back. an occasion to slow down, to breathe more deeply. to open to the possibility that this small creature, passing from person to person - sometimes with tragically fatal effect (especially in marginalized communities) - is affording us a return to our humanness. if we hear and heed the message.

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