Joy - Blog

Tree Huggers, Heartless Bastards, and Me...

So, here's where I stand on the whole "Save the Planet" thing. I'm far from being a hippie. I don't shop with canvas bags, although I genuinely would like to remember that they are in the trunk of my car EVERY time I go to the grocery store. When I thaw meat, I leave it in a bowl of running water for about an hour (and feel guilty about it). When I take a shower, I enjoy it for however long I like (and don't feel guilty about it). I use disposable diapers from Seventh Generation (also no guilt there). One of our cars is not a hybrid and I drive it everywhere, usually without carpooling. I don't unplug my computer or toaster daily-- okay, EVER... and I still throw away many plastic bags (yes, I said it, so all of you who are also too busy to remember when recycling day is-- or worse, who have to go take your recycling to the Recycling Center-- can join me in my shame).


That being said, I don't buy soda or plastic water bottles, and I don't litter or spit my gum out anywhere but in a garbage. I try to get paper instead of plastic at the store and reuse the bags often, and I drink everything from a glass or reusable bottle. I wait until the dishwasher and washer/dryer are full before doing loads, I like to turn out lights when i leave a room, and I immediately fix all dripping faucets. We support a local farm share, I recycle all old electronics, I trained myself to turn off the water while brushing my teeth, and I have a compost bucket in the kitchen. I rarely use plasticware, and I NEVER use styrofoam. I don't even like ordering takeout from restaurants that use it for packaging and I think it should be illegal.


So, why the sudden confession? Well, honestly I feel a little bombarded with the current media obsession over GREEN. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE this beautiful planet. I get pissed when I see a car spewing black smoke or someone littering on the street. It's obvious that over the last fifty years we have not been kind to this earth, which is truly a gift. However, I think there needs to be a healthy dose of reality added to the Green agenda. From what I've seen, the Green movement has prioritized the environment & animals over the condition of the human heart and the condition of our freedoms. There are holocausts occurring in the world! There are children and babies being sold for sex and drug trafficking! There are people starving everywhere. There are little boys being trained for guerrilla militia daily. Innocence is being robbed EVERYWHERE. Thirty million Americans are functionally illiterate. Women are still devastatingly oppressed all over the world... The list goes on and on.


But above all this -- your neighbor is sick and can't afford his medical bills. The elderly are often cast aside as useless and sometimes discarded into poorly cared for facilities. Pornography is still tearing apart marriages, and someone you know is being sexually abused. Racism is not yet a thing of the past, and people still spend energy hating others over things like sexual preference and religious preference...

"But," some might say, "without the planet, we won't even exist to fight those issues in the first place!"

Really? You want to wait until the planet and the tigers are saved before you start combatting the darkness in your own backyard? If your children are being abused in your home but you're upside-down on your mortgage, would you focus on paying the bills, saying, "Without a house, we won't even have a place to live in while we stop the abuse!?" Of course not!

Look, here's the meat and potatoes of what I'm trying to say...

If you feel a strong calling-- a connection to the environment or certain animals in danger, I would never say to ignore that calling. If you feel your destiny is with Greenpeace, by all means, give Greenpeace hell! Perhaps you are meant to make a great difference in the lives of the people you encounter while on this charge--perhaps they in yours. But it IS the PEOPLE who are most important here. I would challenge you all to revisit your position on this. Yes, do what you can within reason to respect the earth we've been given -- recycle when you can, turn off lights and don't litter. Yes, toss a quarter or dollar into the cup with the picture of the malnourished horse at the checkout counter. But please don't stop there! You are meant to make a significant contribution to the people in this world, no matter how small. Sure, it's easier to just throw money or support at any random organization that seems worthy, just as it is easier to maintain surface friendships -- intentionality is HARD WORK! But we are designed for it. We are fulfilled in the pursuing of relationship more than activity... Don't believe me? Ask anyone over 80 if they wished they'd accomplished more in matters of the heart or matters of the mind.

So, carry on! Enjoy completing your civil and environmental duties, but don't forget to be intentional with the relationships around you! And remember that your philanthropic cause is not more or as important as the person with whom you are crusading.

Xo BJG