On Earth Day

3V1200SunsetSky by Jim Crotty

Gitanjali ~ Song 69

       -by Rabindranath Tagore

The same stream of life that runs through my veins night and day runs through the world and dances in rhythmic measures.

It is the same life that shoots in joy through the dust of the earth in numberless blades of grass and breaks into tumultuous waves of leaves and flowers.

It is the same life that is rocked in the ocean-cradle of birth and of death, in ebb and in flow.

I feel my limbs are made glorious by the touch of this world of life. And my pride is from the life-throb of ages dancing in my blood this moment.

Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941) Indian poet, playwright and essayist;

won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913.

This is Number Ten in a randomly-posted, continuing series of quotes by Tagore.

Everything he wrote is golden.

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Earth Day

Acorn, by Norine Kevolic

I pluck an acorn and hold it to my ear, and this is what it says to me:  "By and by the birds will come and nest in me. By and by I will furnish shade for the cattle. By and by I will provide warmth for the home. By and by I will be shelter from the storm to those who have gone under the roof. By and by I will be the strong ribs of a great vessel, and the tempest will beat against me in vain, while I carry men across the Atlantic."  "O foolish little acorn, wilt thou be all this?" I ask.  And the acorn answers, "Yes, God and I."

-Lyman Abbott (1835 – 1922), American Congregationalist theologian, editor, and author

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Happy Earth Day to Mother Nature's sons and daughters

Artwork: Bottom's Up by Spencer Coleman;
The Nature Ramble and The 1st of September by James Hardy Jr.


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after the goldrush 1973 before earth day 2009

This video by midnight equinox features After the Goldrush by Neil Young, with versions by Prelude and Radiohead.




I have the record album titled After the Goldrush by Prelude that contains the namesake song by Neil Young. It's an album that, even when I touch the cover, transports me back to the very time when the album was a rush to listen to, and I flushed in the presence of those who gushed that these were golden days, that I was a golden girl, that we were all golden together, that we were beholden to the Earth for all of its blessings and that we would never betray the sacred oaths we made to one another or the Earth.

It was 1973, three years after the first Earth Day ......... the olden days.





Photo: me in '73

You can listen to a short clip of the Prelude version, and buy the full song, here.

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Earth Day 2008

TRAVEL'S MOST ENDANGERED PLACES in Ski Adventure on Concierge.com

THE GLACIERS OF EUROPE -- Where: The Alps
THE SNOWS OF KILIMANJARO -- Where: Tanzania
LOUISIANA'S COASTAL SALT MARSHES -- Where: Atchafalaya Basin, Louisiana
GREAT BARRIER REEF -- Where: Queensland, Australia
THE FLORIDA EVERGLADES -- Where: South Florida
ARCTIC POLAR BEARS -- Where: Northern Manitoba Coast, Canada
THE TAJ MAHAL -- Where: Agra, India
ORANGUTANS OF BORNEO -- Where: Tanjung Puting Biosphere Reserve, Borneo
CENTRAL AMERICA'S CLOUD FORESTS -- Where: Monteverde Cloud Forest Preserve, Costa Rica
AFRICA'S LION POPULATION -- Where: Kruger National Park, South Africa


On this Earth Day 2008 I encourage readers to view a beautiful short essay/pictorial review by Peter J. Frank (link above). His preface reads:

Isn't it ironic that as it gets easier to travel around the world, there are fewer amazing things to see. The earth's most revered marvels are increasingly falling victim to overcrowding, global warming, and untrammeled development. Of course, the rush to see those disappearing treasures means—­ironically, again—that they become even further endangered. Climate change and human encroachment are without doubt the double karate chop to many of the world's most special wonders, threatening to KO them for everyone. So while we're suggesting that you put these spots on your must-do list, we also hope you visit them in a low-impact, environmentally sustainable way. And spread the word: With the right kind of attention, these wonders will be around for future generations of travelers.

Our favorite holidays are beloved because as we celebrate their special meaning we are filled with love and awe. Earth Day does that for me, fills me with love and awe for this fragile home of ours. Unlike other holidays that generate a sense of celebration, meditation, redemption, and renewal, as the years pass it is more difficult to view the latter two as being associated with Earth Day. If we don't add education and obligation to the list now our reasons for celebration and meditation around Earth Day will be nil, for we'll have lost hope for redemption and renewal.


photo: paid subscription Clipart.com