Happy Earth Day 2011!

Guest Blogger: Elias Cortez

Earth Day 2011

“Trees are the earth’s endless effort to speak to the listening heaven,” said Rabindranath Tagore.  This is such a poignant message for all of us – if we pay attention. What is earth telling the heavens that is eluding us – humans? Or maybe we know but choose to ignore and disrespect the earth. A sudden upsurge of consciousness about our earth augurs well for the future, and rightly so.

The world has been spinning on money for a long time now, which has turned life into a rat race.  We are all running and yet not reaching the goal, because it is possible that none of us know what we are running towards. Money, possessions, luxury have been the dominant factors in all our lives, but some are paying attention to the platform on which we stand and reach for our trophies – the good earth. A Cree Indian proverb goes like this – “Only when the last tree has died, and the last river been poisoned, and the last fish been caught, will we realize we cannot eat money”; let us pray that day never comes.

A few decades back, the world was greener to soothe our hurting eyes, but today the scenery has changed drastically in most countries. Deforestation and industries and modern ways of life have taken their toll on the silent, suffering Mother Earth. Time to rectify the wrongs as much as we can because “We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children”; this is a Native American proverb. Let us do everything possible to give back our children a world as close to its original form as possible.

Earthday.org has planned for “A Billion Acts of Green” to be completed before the Earth Summit to be held in 2012 in Rio. Artists, schools, women leaders, and athletes have been roped in to contribute actively toward this goal. Trees are being planted on a massive scale in all countries; artists are doing their bit to bring awareness; schools are vowing to go green; and women leaders are doing whatever possible to send the vital message across.

Steven Cortez

Television commercials keep reminding us about our commitment and world leaders are seriously considering the various options to reduce carbon footprints. As individuals, we can do our bit on a daily basis to bring back the pristine glory of our loved earth. Little things like switching off power when not in use, using the minimum of energy possible, walking more often instead of driving, planting a tree as often as we can, controlling water wastage at homes, and so many more such small steps will surely do the miracle.

Miracle it is and a joyous one as people world over realize the importance of earth’s nature. So long earth has been giving us without complaints; now it is our turn to give back earth  some of the love and respect she definitely deserves. We all come together on this platform because as Wendell Barry said, “The earth is what we all have in common”.

About the Author

Elias Cortez is a freelance writer and the editor of www.topnetbookpicks.com, a website which provides detailed reviews and information for popular netbook models such as the Asus 1015 pem and the Asus 1215N series. You can learn more about the world of netbooks at his website.