Dateline – 1955 – 2021  It was the best of times, and it was the… well, we’ll have to see how this pans out.

        Nineteen hundred and fifty-five is not really such a long time ago.  I’d wager many readers (or their parents) were either donning buzz haircuts or saddle shoes at that time.  It was the time Grandma Gert collected Green Stamps that she eventually traded in for a wheat-leaf motif set of dishware including the glass that held my morning fruit smoothie.

        It was also the year that Life magazine published an article entitled “Throwaway Living” with the photo of a family joyously throwing armfuls of paper, plastic and “tin” disposables into the air.  The article touted the convenience of single-use items, a homemaker’s godsend!  After thousands of years of human civilization using, reusing, repairing and passing on cherished tools, utensils and household goods for generations, the “Throwaway Society” was born.
 
        Grandma acquired the wheat-leaf glasses with the intention of passing them on.  Thank you Grandma!  In contrast, the plastic fountain-drink cup I used to fill the birdfeeders this morning had been manufactured to be a single-use item.  Surprisingly, the barely visible date, 2008, on the label clearly indicates it has been serviceable well beyond that single serving use.  Untold billions of plastic cups have been discarded since then.

        Alas, we are awash in plastic trash.  From the Great Garbage Patch in the Pacific Ocean to the micro-plastics in our food, water and the air we breathe, plastic debris is everywhere.  For a variety of reasons, some well-intentioned some not, we’ve been led to trust that buying and disposing of any and all plastic stuff is fine if the item displays the triangular recycle symbol.  But of the 8.3 billion metric tons of plastic created since 1955 only 9% has been recycled.

        What to do?  Start by remembering that “Recycle” is the LAST option in that familiar mantra.  First REJECT plastic-packaged goods.  Next REDUCE the amount of stuff we purchase.  Then REUSE, REPAIR and REPURPOSE the stuff we have.  Finally, by all means RECYCLE.

        Technologists are finding ways to reduce the glut of existing plastics.  For example, specialized microbes munch on some; pavement and structural materials are made from others, so this story CAN end as the best of times.  Let’s make it so because our only home is right here where we’re forever… Earthbound.

        Les Phumes hadn’t been on a bike in years, but here he was peddling down the street instead of taking his car.  Recently, he’d been hearing the term “climate emergency” more and more frequently on the news.  “An emergency is something serious that needs immediate attention,” he said to himself.  “Sounds like an all-hands-on-deck situation, so I need to do my part.  Excessive CO2 is polluting our atmosphere, so we gotta reduce our use of carbon-based fuels significantly.  And here I am using leg-power to run to the store instead of burning fossil fuel,” he smiled.

        Les’s neighbor, Anita Savemorre, was just leaving the Quik-Mart as he glided up.  “Sweet ride!” Anita said admiring Les’s bike.  “Yeah, I’m trying to do my part about this climate thing,” Les grinned.  On his ride home he remembered how Anita had lost her job during the pandemic.  Her family was barely able to make ends meet.  They surly wouldn’t be buying new bikes any time soon.  Nevertheless, Anita probably also wanted to help with the climate situation even though her family certainly wouldn’t have the cash to pay for energy-saving home upgrades or solar panels.  “Yet, there must be some ways for Anita’s family to contribute to this effort,” he thought.

        Les had heard a lot of good things about Wisconsin’s Focus on Energy program.  So that evening he searched its website and learned that for every $1 Focus spends it creates almost $5 in energy cost savings.  Very impressive!  But how could someone who has no money to spend, like Anita’s family, benefit?  He read on and then – Bingo! 

        The next day Les posted the following on his neighborhood Facebook page.  “Want to Save Money AND Reduce Polluting Emissions? Get a FREE Focus Lightbulb Pack.  It includes 6 LED lightbulbs and a roll of pipe insulation wrap.  Order yours at - https://tinyurl.com/GetBulbs   LEDs use 90% less energy and can last up to 15 times longer than incandescent bulbs.  Save money AND lower your carbon footprint; it’s a Two-fer!”

            Later, Les learned that Anita was so excited about the free bulbs that she was talking it up with all the neighbors.  “In an emergency, everyone has to step up,” she told them. “That’s what neighbors do; we look out for one another.  Because after all, this is the only home we’ll ever know.  It’s where we’re all forever… Earthbound.”

       Just an ordinary guy, Les Dooright is probably not very different than you and me.  He tries to be kind, treat others fairly and if possible eventually leave this world a little bit better when he passes on to the next.  But after dealing with the pandemic for over a year, Les was worn thin.  So when he read a statement by Scientific American journal and over 400 of its global journalism partners, it was just about too much. 

       The declaration concerned emergencies - serious situations that require immediate action.  A burning house is an emergency.  COVID has been a global emergency; it’s serious and needs immediate action.  The statement went on to say we now face another global emergency.  Scientific evidence concerning the climate is undeniable, so these organizations from now on will refer to it as a climate emergency.  It’s serious and we must act NOW.

        “Oh my!  If this is an emergency then we need to act like it is,” Les said to himself.  “That means keeping as much carbon-based fossil fuel as possible in the ground.  Then we gotta pull the excess CO2 out of the atmosphere and lock it into the soil where it will actually do some good.  Wise farming practices will help with that.  But golly,  I don’t know if I can handle ANOTHER global emergency.  Besides, what can I do?  It’s just too much!” 

        That night Les fell into an uneasy sleep feeling both overwhelmed and a bit guilty for not doing his part about the climate emergency.  As he tossed on his pillow his grandmother, Wanda Day, came to him in a dream.  Taking his face in her soft hands Grandma Day asked, “Lester, why do you fret so?  Remember what I taught you about seemingly overwhelming problems?  Take one step a day, and you’re on your way.”  Les sat bolt upright. “That’s it – One-a-Day.  I can do that!”

        The next day Les made a list of all the one-a-day ways he could reduce his use of fossil fuels and plastics (also petroleum-based.)  “No one person can address this emergency alone.  But each of us can be part of the rescue team and do at least one thing each day to build a better world.  Because after all, this is the only home we’ll ever know.  It’s where we’re all forever… Earthbound.”