Twenty years....

* Come back shortly for post

And, the World Keeps Turning

https://youtu.be/ihhiSi_XnMM - Convictions of the Heart~Kenny Loggins

“Look again at that dot. That's here. That's home. That's us. On it everyone you love, everyone you know, everyone you ever heard of, every human being who ever was, lived out their lives. The aggregate of our joy and suffering, thousands of confident religions, ideologies, and economic doctrines, every hunter and forager, every hero and coward, every creator and destroyer of civilization, every king and peasant, every young couple in love, every mother and father, hopeful child, inventor and explorer, every teacher of morals, every corrupt politician, every "superstar," every "supreme leader," every saint and sinner in the history of our species lived there-on a mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam.

The Earth is a very small stage in a vast cosmic arena. Think of the endless cruelties visited by the inhabitants of one corner of this pixel on the scarcely distinguishable inhabitants of some other corner, how frequent their misunderstandings, how eager they are to kill one another, how fervent their hatreds. Think of the rivers of blood spilled by all those generals and emperors so that, in glory and triumph, they could become the momentary masters of a fraction of a dot.

Our posturings, our imagined self-importance, the delusion that we have some privileged position in the Universe, are challenged by this point of pale light. Our planet is a lonely speck in the great enveloping cosmic dark. In our obscurity, in all this vastness, there is no hint that help will come from elsewhere to save us from ourselves.

The Earth is the only world known so far to harbor life. There is nowhere else, at least in the near future, to which our species could migrate. Visit, yes. Settle, not yet. Like it or not, for the moment the Earth is where we make our stand.

It has been said that astronomy is a humbling and character-building experience. There is perhaps no better demonstration of the folly of human conceits than this distant image of our tiny world. To me, it underscores our responsibility to deal more kindly with one another, and to preserve and cherish the pale blue dot, the only home we've ever known.”
― Carl Sagan, Pale Blue Dot

Today is Earth Day.  What exactly does it mean – that 45 years ago, it was decided that we needed to set aside one day in which to honor Mother Earth?  I appreciate the sentiment that peace activist, John McConnell, first proposed at the 1969 UNESCO Conference held in San Francisco, California.   Ah....yes.  The next question many of you may be asking is, WHAT is UNESCO?  It is the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.  It’s purpose is to, “contribute to peace and security by promoting international collaboration through education, science, and culture, in order to further universal respect for justice, the rule of law, and human rights, along with fundamental freedom proclaimed in the United Nations Charter.” Whew! Wow!  THAT is a mouthful!  Plain and simple: let’s ALL respect Mother Earth~let’s all do unto others as we want them to do unto us!  Live and let live....in peace....in harmony.  Love IS the answer! Is this hippie, love-child rhetoric?  Who cares!  Is it too much to ask?  I don’t think so, but then, I’m a dreamer, you see...and, for the recored, I think we should honor our mother daily, not just once a year. But that’s me...
There has never been a more important time to respect the earth upon which we live.  Climate change surrounds us – not for the better, I might add.  Slowly, by greed that chokes her, and poisons–toxins which pollute her and strangle the life force from her, we are killing the earth upon which we live.  It is a sad, immoral state of affairs.  If you don’t believe in climate change or aren’t certain WHAT exactly it is, go to NOAA’s website, and research it for yourself.   http://www.nws.noaa.gov/om/brochures/climate/Climatechange.pdf  
In simplest terms, climate change is a long-term shift in the statistics of our weather patterns – averages included.  Images of the Northwest Passage are staggering – when one looks at images of the Arctic from thirty years ago, compared to now the changes are visibly stark; the Alps have been warming at three times its global average.  Go look at pictures of the Alpine Glaciers and see for yourself the changes in recent years.  Last year, Kiribati, a small island in the Pacific, became the first country to declare that “global warming is rendering its lands uninhabitable,” and it is now seeking aid in evacuating its 100,000 inhabitants.  The waters are rising in some areas of the world, and disappearing in others.
The Great Barrier Reef is another area that is feeling the impact of climate change.  Here, an estimated 10 percent of its coral was lost to mass bleaching between 1998 and 2002.  Our oceans absorb the carbon dioxide we produce.   As a result, we’re shifting the PH balance of these waters. The first effected by such changes are sea life, namely, lobster, crab, mollusks and sea snails, etc, that use calcium carbonate to form their exoskeletons and shells.  Bleaching is becoming a serious problem in this area.  As these reefs vanish, so shall fish and other forms of ocean wildlife will follow in due course, like dominoes tumbling down.  The clock IS ticking...
Who’s noticed an increase in catastrophic-producing weather conditions, such as hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes and tsunamis?  Let me make mention of  hurricanes: 81 billion dollars has been paid out in claims resulting from Hurricane Katrina and other storms that hit Florida during the 2004-2005 hurricane season alone.  Storms hitting various places in the world are stronger and more volatile than previously seen or recorded in our history, because it’s a consistent intensity that we are now dealing with, not the sporadic intensiveness in days of yore.  It’s not like a “Galveston” happens, then we have a 30-100- year break before another storm of that magnitude approaches and hits.   The weather-trinity {Motherlode} of deadliest U.S. storms: Galveston in 1900, the 1928 Okeechobee hurricane, and 2005's Katrina, {Category 4+ storms} are becoming more the norm than the rarity of predictions.
The dying roots of Darfur are not solely a result of the ethnic discord and tribulations of that region.  Decades-long drought has strangled the life force out of this belt, and slowly has begun encroaching into the areas of the Central African Republic and Chad.  When the U. N. Security Council held its first-ever debate over climate change, the Representative from Ghana stood and loudly declared his hope that the “repeated alarm about the threats posed by global warming would ‘lead to action that is timely, concerted and sustainable.’”
Climate change is here, and we’re living it – seeing the effects of it.  I need no debate.  I have eyes that can see and read.  I have ears that can hear and listen to what others who are more versed than I in such matters state are very real issues facing us.  I have intelligence that can understand and process the concerns that must be addressed and addressed SOONER rather than later!
Earth is such a beautiful planet.  She deserves to be respected and tended to properly, with loving care so that future generations will be able to see and enjoy the Rain Forests of Central America; The Australian Great Barrier Reef; the falls of Niagra and the Everglades of Florida in the United States; and the jungles and deserts of Africa.  The time is NOW to protect her!  It should NOT be negotiable!  We should be doing EVERYTHING in our power to sustain the earth on which we live!
Today is the 45 annual celebration of  Earth Day.  Dr. Maya Angelou said, “when you know better, you do better.”  We know that we have not been taking care of our planet as we should.  On this Earth Day, let’s all pledge to be better stewards.  Earth is the only place we have, after all,  that we know for a fact we can live upon.  As we celebrate today, may we not forget the words of the Prophet, Kahlil Gibran when he gave each of us THIS to consider: “And forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair...”
Happy Earth Day 2015, Everyone!  May you be blessed, and may you be a blessing...Peace out~

https://youtu.be/wlR0KElxxVg - I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing~The New Seekers

https://youtu.be/OlNZN94_u-s - Big Yellow Taxi~Joni Mitchell

“If you want to be reminded of the love of the Lord, just watch the sunrise.” 
              ― Jeannette Walls 

https://youtu.be/GjcU25_mqDY  Julia Butterfly Hill ~ Divine Mirrors
https://youtu.be/SRxnIxs-4Fg   ~ Gift of Breath
https://youtu.be/3LpEBMlTODo ~ Ancestors to the Future
https://youtu.be/Ykd20ladr8E ~ Power of Love
https://youtu.be/Su8oVQ2aBt0 ~ Manifesting Heaven on Earth
https://youtu.be/_VnCgx-66f0  ~ Respect, Rethink, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Rejoice...

My husband had Ms. Butterfly Hill speak to his classes at Northwestern High School in Hyattsville, MD back in 2004.  It was my high honor to have made her an unexpected lunch of Vegan Chili, Corn Muffins with Jalapenos and Vegan brownies, which she gave two thumbs up.  Tom still speaks of this experience with great respect and awe of what this woman accomplished.

The Long And Winding Road...

https://youtu.be/YfQXkrwnaUI - The Long & Winding Road~Paul McCartney
https://youtu.be/iYuyar-rrNY - Yellow~Coldplay

come back later tonight for post.