It's a Wonderful World
Louis Armstrong
Back in 1970 I think that I was aware of polution, both the air and the ground kinds. I knew what air polution was because, for the first ten years of my life, I lived in the West End of Louisville and had to endure the horrible smell of what people living there called carbite, a chemical released into the air that was a by-product of calcium carbide manufacturing. The reason the folks who lived near the duPont chemical plant called it car-bite is because the lime in the air ate the paint off of cars. I wonder what it did to our lungs?
I was aware of ground polutiion because I was an avid reader of the Walt Kelly's comic strip Pogo
. Pogo's famous observation about the litter filling the swamp that was his home made an impact on me as a teenager -- and the words still do:
I was not aware of the problems of climate change, or conservation and biodiversity, or recycling, or of a lot more core issues. In fact, I am still learning about those issues.
Therefore, today I celebrate the earth. The more I understand about how the planet upon which I live and share with so many others has been and is being exploited for the profit of a few greedy human beings, the more angry I become. The more I come to understand this planet upon which I live and share with so many others, the more impressed and thankful I become.
Hear me, four quarters of the earth -- a relative I am! Give me the strength to walk the soft earth. Give me the eyes to see and the strength to understand, that I may be like you. With your power only can I face the winds. Great Spirit...all over the earth the faces of living things are all alike. With tenderness have these come up out of the ground. Look upon these faces of children without number and with children in their arms, that they may face the winds and walk the good road to the day of quiet. This is my prayer' hear me! ~ Black Elk, of the Oglata Sioux Nation
AMEN!
Even me also not aware of the problem of climate changes.
ReplyDeleteIt's kind of sad that I never knew the earth NOT to be affected by pollution.
ReplyDeleteThe sad thing is that we are slowly killing not only the planet but ourseves as well.
ReplyDeletediscount coupons: I agree with you. I think wery few people have been aware of climate changes. I know that I am still learning.
ReplyDeleteSilver Neurotic: You make an excellent point! Are you familar with Tom Paxton's song, Whose garden was this?
ReplyDeleteWhose garden was this
It must have been lovely
Did it have flowers
Ive seen pictures of flowers
And Id love to have smelled one
Whose river was this
You say it ran freely
Blue was its colour
And Ive seen blue in some pictures
And Id love to have been there
Tell me again, I need to know
The forest had trees, the meadows were green
The oceans were blue
And birds really flew
Can you swear that its true
Whose grey sky was this
Or was it a blue one
You say they were breezes
Ive heard records of breezes
And Id love to have felt one
Tell me again, I need to know
The forest had trees, the meadows were green
The oceans were blue
And birds really flew
Can you swear that its true
Whose garden was this
It must have been lovely
Did it have flowers
Ive seen pictures of flowers
And Id love to have smelled one
Tell me again, I need to know
Tell me again, I need to know
Tell me again, I need to know
Mike Golch: Good point, Mike. Perhaps the lesson we humans need to learn is that we are part of the earth and what we do to our planet we also do to ourselves.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful prayer from Black Elk. And that Pogo takes me back--a stroke of genius.
ReplyDelete40 years since the first Earth Day??? I didn't realize it had been that long either.
Thank you for this lovely post, Nick.
Good post, Saintly Nick. Happy Earth Day to you and your furball.
ReplyDeleteWell, I didn't make it here on THE Earth Day, but I did make here on the next day, which is the next Earth Day, considering that all days are days to be grateful for and revere our life-supporting earth.
ReplyDeleteAs I write this, there is a layer of white on all of the earth within my site and it's still coming down as though we are living in a winter wonderland... near the end of April.
Gosh I didn't realise it was the
ReplyDelete40th Anniversary!
Good post. Peace
ReplyDeleteAlways a beautiful song by Louis Armstrong .. and gorgeous Native American pic!
ReplyDeleteHope you had a nice Earth Day, SS Nick.
Peace & well-being to you, my friend. =)
San: I know! 40 years sounds like a lifetime.
ReplyDeleteI really like Black Elk's prayer and have for many years. The photo is supposedly of Black Elk.
I realized after I posted this that almost all of my Earth Day posts contain Pogo. I suppose he and his words are most appropriate.
Fiochra: Thank you, my friend. I hope that you had a grand Earth Day celebration on your side of The Pond.
ReplyDeleteCarol: I agree: every day is an Earth Day! I attended the Earth Day Climate Rally in D.C. earlier today via the Internet.
ReplyDeleteSnow in April.Perhaps we're entering another ice age?