Earth Day April 22 2015 Thanks Dad!

My Dad, a US Army Veteran and great citizen, God rest his soul, used too say that we were taking too much oil out of the ground which was causing earthquakes and disrupting the earth.  I think he was right!  As I ponder that today, on April 22nd, which is the 45th anniversary of the launch of Earth Day, I think of my Dad.  He grew his own garden behind our home in a small town in New Jersey and I was eating organic vegetables every summer before I knew what organic was!  Whole foods that My Mom made from scratch like white beans, tomatoes with pasta and polenta were healthy, cost savvy staples that in today's trendy restaurants go for over $25 per plate! What a blessing I had for which I am very grateful!

This morning on Earth Day, I am scanning through my Dad's copy of Rachel Carson's classic book copy written in 1962, Silent Spring, which I kept from his Library.  Dad was an environmentalist before it was cool.  He even kept his own Bees.  Gardening and beekeeping were welcomed after dinner relaxing activities to him following a tough day running his company that he owned.  Rachel's book starts with Chapter 1, "A Fable for tomorrow."  It begins, "There was once a town in the heart of America where all life seemed to live in harmony with its surroundings..."

We all know today's news: The year 2014 ranks as Earth’s warmest since recordings started in 1880, according to two separate analyses by NASA and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) scientists.  Yet, I am still an optimist.  And I believe that even the smallest of activities of humankind add up and can make a difference.  So, for my part, I drive a hybrid.  I started keeping a mess kit in the car because I felt badly about stopping at Starbucks and Peets incurring multiple throwaways in one day, stopped the plastic shopping bag waste to landfill thanks to California legislation and have reduced my use of small plastic, disposable water bottles.  I am not perfect and we all have to be realistic, however, again, every little action can add up to greatness.  What are your contributions to assist Mother Earth in protecting us?

45th anniversary of Earth Day