Earth Day falls on April 22 each year, as a reminder to honour Mother Earth and Nature in all her splendour. To experience with awe the sunrises and sunsets, forests and waterfalls, deserts and snow-clad mountains, as seagulls take flight and tigers roar.
But, how many of us have actually paused to witness these breathtaking moments, without taking out our phones and clicking pictures for posting on the gram? How
many times have we known what it is to just 'be', in the here and now, for hours at a stretch?
Instead, how often have we conveniently left out from our images the mess of plastic littered everywhere, with the caption - "in the lap of Mother Nature"?
It's no wonder that this year, the global theme for Earth Day is “Planet vs Plastic”. After all, plastic has not only invaded our households and workplaces, but infested our oceans, our soil and now entered our blood stream and even mother's milk.
The recent flash floods across the Gulf countries, multiple earthquakes in South East Asia, rising heat levels in cold deserts like Ladakh are not perchance. They are merely Nature's way of asking us to slow down and listen. We all know climate change is not a myth or a potential threat a few decades down the line. It is here already as our present reality, and we need to do something about it today.
We need to remind ourselves that Mother Earth is a living consciousness, and our existence depends on her well-being. The mindful steps we take today are the only hope we have to restore the balance that has been toppled in the last few decades.
For all the conscious eco-warriors who are constantly working towards cleaning up the mess, there is a much larger group of people who feel "If it doesn't affect me, I really don't care!'.
It's time to slow down for a bit and think about what you are doing. There's always a way to tread softly on the Earth, with small, mindful yet meaningful gestures. These little steps taken consciously, can keep this planet thriving for our future generations to thrive and blossom. Let's give our children a much more joyful, green and vibrant planet than ever before.
Here's some easy things you can start with:
- Switch to steel or copper bottles, and carry them wherever you go, rather than buying a plastic bottle of mineral water each time you're thirsty
- Carry a little napkin or handkerchief in your bag, and skip the tissues
- Plan zero-waste birthdays, celebrations and weddings
- Opt for steel, glass or ceramic cutlery when you have events, instead of disposables
- Learn to compost your green waste and convert it into black gold for your soil
- Save, clean and dry those seeds when you eat fruits or veggies, and scatter them the next time you're travelling during the monsoons
- Plant a sapling for every happy milestone of your life
- Recycle plastic bags by giving them to organisations that repurpose them
- Choose to buy from brands that are eco-conscious and it is evident in their manufacturing, packaging and sustainability
- Repair the old, so that you can refuse the new. It's fun to get carried away while shopping, but if you can simply ask yourself - "Do I really need this to make me happy or improve my life?", you will swipe your credit card less frequently (that’s an added bonus).
There's so much more that we can do, but it's best to start small, with what you can manage instead of feeling overwhelmed by everything all at once. Making small changes is a bigger step , than making no changes at all.
We'd love to hear what you do, to mindfully celebrate the Earth every single day.
The Earth is not out there, somewhere. It's right here beneath our feet, in the air we breathe and in the splash of the ocean's waves we feel against our skin.
Let's honour Mother Nature by healing her ... and let's start today!
