Would You Treat Your Mother Like That?

Earth Day is April 22 this year.
It's Mother's Day for our home, the Earth.
Are you doing anything special?

It's All One Thing

We are all made from the same stuff: stardust from ancient supernovas. And we are all held together by that invisible Force with many names. The Earth is made from the same stuff, and held together by the same Force. We don't need to be in harmony WITH nature. We ARE nature. We just forgot along the way.

The view of our Earth as our mother is sometimes made fun of, but where would we be without it? The Earth is our only home. Somewhere along the line we as a culture forgot that. The Earth is an extension of our own bodies. The forests are our lungs. The soil is our skin, the water is our blood. I have always felt a deep connection to the natural world around me. The woods around my childhood home were a magical and nourishing paradise for me. So I had a pre-disposition to be kind to the Earth. Sitting among strong silent trees brings a Peace beyond words, beyond the mind, beyond thought. It is the Peace that I am made of.

Even if you don't feel that resonance when sitting the natural world that has been untouched by human hands, there's a practical aspect to taking care of our planet. It sustains our lives, not to mention thousands of other life forms that form an interdependent, intricate balance. Doesn't it seem kind of nuts to mess with that?

Early Training

A large family and parents who grew up during the Great Depression meant I had great training in conserving resources.

One of my grade school teachers told my class that a good way to decide whether it's a good idea to do something is to think about what would happen if everyone did it. The example was littering. I imagined mountains of trash all along the sides of the roads, in the school, the house.

When I was a kid, I remember drawing, using a lot of paper. My mother said not to waste it. I said, “But there's plenty!” to which she replied, “That's no reason to waste it.

Necessity as the Mother of Invention

My mom didn't drive, so we did all of our errands on one trip on Saturdays. We would go to the grocery store, Post Office, hardware store, dentist or doctor, and the bank. One trip for all of it. We had a large family, and this strategy not only was the only time my father could drive into town, but it saved time gas, and money.

We were also taught to turn off the lights each time we left the room. To close the door when the heat was on, to turn off the tap while washing the dishes, and to think about what we wanted before opening the refrigerator door.

Common Sense Saving Money and Energy

I also loved how my mother taught me to use logic and common sense to be intelligent consumers. She

taught us to figure the cost per ounce or pound of items on the shelves, years before that information was included on the tags on the shelves. And when the Hawaiin Punch commercial came on and the big red pitcher said “It's 10% real fruit juice.”, my mother would say, “That means it's 90% water.” When a laundry detergent or shampoo said that “there's none better.” my mother would counter with “That means there's something else just as good.” Those critical thinking skills also served me in school and when listening to politicians' speeches.

So all that early training has served me to keep my utility bills low, while using fewer non-renewable resources. That's helps me. It helps my personal economy. And it helps my home, the Earth.

It's All About Perspective

Here's a beautiful short video on who we are in the scheme of things. It reminds me how precious life is, how special our planet it, how beautiful we are.

There are a multitude of ways to save energy and resources without spending a lot of money. I was thrilled to see that being a vegan saves more energy per year than driving a hybrid. I'm not totally vegan, but close to it. And since I can't afford a hybrid right now, I'm glad I'm doing something right.

What Uses the Most Energy In Your Home?

Looking to save money on your utility bills and help reduce climate change at the same time? Here are some tips from my local utility, and some I remember from my days as a Residential
Energy Auditor:

In your home:
- Over the year, the biggest energy use is usually the heat, even in California's mild climates. That's why insulating the attic is the number one recommendation.
- If you have central air conditioning, that can be a big use as well in hot summers. You'll know by how much your utility bill increases in the summer. Attic insulation helps here as well, because it helps keep the cool air in and the hot air out. Attic fans can help some, but a Whole House Fan is better if you live in an area that cools off in the evening. If you have allergies in the summer, then you won't want to go this route.
- The second biggest is usually the water heater. It uses less, but you use it year-round.
- The lights are typically the third-biggest user over the year.
- Small appliances like microwaves, hair dryers, use a lot of energy per minute, but we don't run them much, so they are a smaller part of your bill.
- If you own your home, buy the most efficient appliances you can afford when it's time to replace them.

How about you?

What are your favorite ways to conserve energy or resources, or to have a smaller impact on the planet?