"If we truly care for on another, then leaving mother earth a better place for the next fellow will be as natural as saying hi to each other." John Francis
Simple ... saying hi to your neighbor in the elevator, hello to your coworker in the break room, even a smile and good morning to a stranger in the street if you are in the right mood. It does roll off the tongue with out a lot of thought.
I just finished reading a short article about John Francis, and was thrilled to discover this environmental educator. His approach on connecting people with the environment was reaffirming as I share a similar view. It was refreshing to read how Francis has been digging deeper to the core of how we should be approaching our global issues. I found myself stopping every other sentence tapping my husband on the shoulder to share quote after quote.
In an attempt to focus less on the media-fueled trendieness of reusable shopping bags, organic produce, and what size of vehicle we are driving (all very important though) John Francis is presenting the idea of investing in the environment the way we invest in our family and friends, treating it as an important element and making it a priority on the front burner - not the back.
Living outside of the USA and discovering a new culture is exciting. It allows you to miss the things from home, and experiment with new ways of living life. It also provides you with an eye opening experience of seeing things from the outside in. Through conversation with non-american citizens and watching television, the past year and half has been as if I was window shopping on any main street in america....and it hasn't been a very good view unfortunately. Rather quickly we realized that the perception through news media and pop culture we are conveying to the world is not a good one. Our inability to separate ourselves from materialistic possessions (think of christmas alone) and our need to move as fast as the speed of light, because we are so very busy (news flash everyone is) - has only created an opportunity for excuses of why we continue to pursue (or default in) a direction of living the way mass medias of america have led us. Just a few things to consider.
At this point I will remove myself from the soap box and simply reference you to this peaceful article that describes John Francis, and his ability to quietly educate others about the environment by relating it to saying hello to your neighbor.
"When people ask me, 'What's the bottom line? Where do we go from here?' I tell them it's about how we all treat each other." John Francis
One Man's Stand
1 comment:
Our inability to separate ourselves from materialistic possessions...our need to move as fast as the speed of light...has only created an opportunity for excuses ~ great lines Kel! Slow yet conscious is better!
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