| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| RochelleS |
Posted - Apr 22 2010 : 06:09:00 AM
Happy Earth Day to all of my Farmgirl sisters. I remember the very first one in 1970. ( No, I am not an wizened ancient peering over the top of granny glasses...LOL )
I was in the 7th grade and learning about something new called "the ecology movement" in our geography class. We all got little stickers with the ecology symbol ( it looked like an American flag only with green & white stripes and an "e" where the field of stars would normally be )
Our teachers talked a lot, and with much passion since most of them were under 35, about cleaning up the earth. We had an assembly about picking up trash,walking and riding our bikes as benficial for the air,and how to write letters to our govenrmental officials to get them thinking about how to "save the earth". We went out for the entire last period of school to pick up trash, sweep the sidewalks and have a snack outdoors in our 100 year old school courtyard.
Phrases like "reduce,reuse,recycle" had not been coined yet and we still saw our roadways riddled with cans that had been tossed out during a country drive.
Everyones favorite commercial in those days was the one of the stately Native American Indian gentleman having garbage tossed at his feet,him looking down at it , and then back at the camera with a single tear falling down his cheek. I was hooked for life after that.
Humble beginnings I know. So here we are four decades later... just look how far we have come as a nation. I know there is a lot to continue doing but I am also excited about the fact that for our kids/grandkids some of this is as normal as breathing air to them. Maybe that is what those young enthusiastic teachers in my little Junior Highschool in Iowa envisioned back in 1970... a town where kids would automatically throw a pop can into a recylcle bin and buy canvas bags for shopping.
It is never too late to do something to make our world,wherever that may be, a brighter,cleaner,safer place for everyone.
So, I think I'll go outside, tidy up a bit,take a big whiff of the lilacs blooming, and raise my morning cup of tea on this the 40th anniversary of Earth Day to what we have accomplished so far. Who knows what the next 4 decades will bring? Good things, I'm sure,since many of the dreams of our past are now reality...and the new dreams will be just as real someday,too. |
| 10 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| solilly |
Posted - May 04 2010 : 7:19:56 PM
First I want to say hi and Welcome to Rochelle and what a great come on to the threads. Then I want to say Shirley Jean you are right on for I am two years younger then you and as you said in some ways we have gone backwards. I remember as a child you did not throw any thing away that could be used again in any way. Foil of food was washed and reused. We did not have deposibale diappers. Some how some where in the late sixties this country started becoming the throw away country. Buy packaged things and throw it away. Up until then we had gardens got mostly fresh food at the store only when it was in season was it found. People made all there meals from scratch not in a frozen package. Then we had a president in the seventies who put solar panales on the white house just for another president to take them down. In the 70's there was gas lines because of odd and even days for we were running out of oil and there was coming soon and end to gas as we new it and now fourty years later there is more oil going in the ocean wasted then is used as a whole in a years time. So as with Shirley Jean I still hang my clothes on the line. I do love the way they smell and I still do dishes by hand yes I do have a dryer and a dish washer but they are not my choice. Maybe this time around people will care. One more bad thing about us we are the only country that litters. Other countrys have very hard laws on it. Lilly here in Virgina
learning the life I always wanted. |
| jpbluesky |
Posted - Apr 28 2010 : 07:29:53 AM
Rochelle - thanks for starting this thread! I got to look back and remember other Earth Days that have been special. Another one that was a memory maker for me was the year my daughter was about 9 or 10. Hubby, she and I spent the entire day outside and on our porch learning how to make paper for one of her science projects. It was a pretty day, and we had a lot of fun just celebrating being outside and learning something new.
I think each year Earth Day could be celebrated by spending time learning something environmentally sound as a tribute.
Thanks again!!
Farmgirl Sister # 31
www.blueskyjeannie.blogspot.com
Psalm 51: 10-13 |
| RochelleS |
Posted - Apr 27 2010 : 07:58:39 AM
Thanks,gals, for all of your kind responses. Reading through them I am so grateful we are all doing a little to make a lot better. Hey, Jeannie, I just came across something in a magazine that is called the Home Farming movement...trying to get folks to have even a wndow box garden with a few veggies. I went to the website and it was very encouraging. Have a great week and enjoy these beautiful Spring days,everyone !
Rochelle
"Nothing is too small to make a difference." - Wanda Urbanska |
| jpbluesky |
Posted - Apr 24 2010 : 06:56:42 AM
I am afraid I am a wizened ancient peering over my granny glasses as mentioned above......lol. I was in my twenties (21 to be exact) in 1970 and remember Earth Day very clearly. Even though I think we have gone backwards in many ways from the original goal of being environmentally smart, in other ways things are better. The air is cleaner over big cities, and the water is cleaner it seems, in lakes and rivers. Solar power is really getting main-stream.
BUT then we did not use plastic bags, and instead of making a new light bulb that everyone is calling green when it contains MERCURY, we just turned off the lights more often, and even used candles a lot. I was passionate about it then, and am still. I hope that everyone does use cloth bags for groceries, etc, and does not toss them also just to end up in the landfill. I hope that we all recycle, and cut back on being a comsumer. That is the best thing to do. I often think how cool it would be if everyone had a little vegetable garden in their yard....can you imagine how much more food would be in the world?
I remember trying to save electricity by not using it, and now people advertise saving power by buying more appliances that are energy efficient. Hm...... We use more electricity now than ever before because we all have a computer in addition to all the other things. In the 70's I washed my dishes by hand (still do), and hung my clothes out to dry. Okay, getting off of my soapbox now! :)
Farmgirl Sister # 31
www.blueskyjeannie.blogspot.com
Psalm 51: 10-13 |
| EleanorRose |
Posted - Apr 24 2010 : 06:46:25 AM
Wow, that is an awesome perspective! I really appreciate reading that, Rochelle!
Earth-loving, Rock-star Mama. |
| FebruaryViolet |
Posted - Apr 22 2010 : 11:55:31 AM
I wasn't thought of yet...nor were my parents married (three years later, though :)). We've come a loooong way, baby, but not far enough. We've strayed from the very basic knowledge that if you plant a seed, it will grow.
I signed my first Earth Day Petition in 1990, at 16, and another that same day, vowing "not to use styrofoam"...I STILL don't use styrofoam!!! I think I've done a pretty good job since then, and I am excited for the day that I can share with my little girl all that I have learned...but I'd really like for it to simply be "common sense" by then, instead of "Green", out of the ordinary or anything else.
Musings from our family in the Bluegrass http://sweetvioletmae.blogspot.com/ |
| Karrieann |
Posted - Apr 22 2010 : 11:49:23 AM
I was ten years then... gosh!
Karrieann ~ Farmgirl Sister #766 (29 Sept 2009)
My Blog: ...following my heart, dreams and Jesus
...http://karrieann-followingmyheartandjesus.blogspot.com/
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| Lin |
Posted - Apr 22 2010 : 10:39:33 AM
Thank you Rochelle! It's always good to have reminders to help our earth and continue to work to make a difference! My daughter, who is 13, is passionate about helping our earth and saving the animals, endangered animals in particular. She figured out at around age 7, that she would go to college to learn how to "make a difference" by studying Animal Ecology and that goal only becomes more empowered the older she gets. It happens she has the gift of Aspergers, so fighting hard for what she needs and wants, is second nature to her. I admire her and all those that work so hard to help the world become a better place! Hugs and Smiles, Lin
"Our beautiful earth is worth saving"!! |
| graciegreeneyes |
Posted - Apr 22 2010 : 07:25:37 AM
Thanks for sharing that Rochelle!! I would have been almost 6 months old - it is encouraging to see the changes and the education that has happened over the last 40 years. I have worked in organic foods for about 20 years (wow, really? 20 years?) and there is more awareness than ever about a variety of issues. Here's hoping the next 40 bring even bigger changes!
Amy Grace
Farmgirl #224
"use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without"
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| vintagediva1 |
Posted - Apr 22 2010 : 06:43:17 AM
Thanks Rochelle,
What a nice little walk down memory lane.
I, too, remember that first Earth Day as I was expecting my first child and wondered what kind of legacy she would inherit.
We have come a long way in 40 years and many ideas that were new then are thankfully ingrained in our daily lives. I'm excited to see what kind of recognition Earth Day receives this year in my granddaughter's school
Wouldn't it be great to see that commercial aired again?
Michele
www.2vintagedivas.etsy.com
www.sissyandsisterstitch.etsy.com
www.sissyandsisterstitch.artfire.com
Love that good ole vintage junk |
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