environment
Diversity At Its Best!
I was recently tasked with writing my quarterly column for an Australian online publication, Grandparents Day Magazine, with that issue’s New Year’s theme being: JUNGLE. The first thought that came to my mind regarding that theme was diversity.
The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines diversity as: The quality or condition of having or being composed of differing elements.
That being the case, a jungle certainly encompasses that definition. Although the jungle is known to be without much variation in seasons – it is humid and hot for most of the year – it contains a wide variety of elements. One could spend a lifetime recording them and not compile a comprehensive list of all that exists there.
One site in my online research noted that there are nearly 40,000 plant species, 1,300 bird species, 3,000 types of fish, 427 species of mammals, and approximately 2.5 million insects.
OH MY GOODNESS! As I said in my post’s title, Diversity At Its Best!
The jungle’s diversity, and that which exists all around us where we live and breathe, makes me happy.
We all have examples of diversity in our human experience. My goodness, my neighborhood in my Washington state town is comprised of homes of varying sizes, differing ages of residents, and, most certainly, a diverse ethnic composition that highlights what living is all about.
And is it necessary to point out that the residents of every country in the world have differing religious and political leanings? At least in the United States where I live, divisions currently exist that have never been wider in my lifetime, and I have lived on this earth 72 years thus far. That division does not make me happy.
I would like to use the jungles of the world as a healthy example of diversity, and although the jungle can also be characterized as a scary place to be …lions and tigers and bears, oh my! … it is still a natural example of diversity at its best, from which perhaps all of us in the world could learn a lesson or two.
May it be so.
Celebrating the Differences
I absolutely love the different ways our UK neighbors label things that many of us, at least us in the United States, label differently.
One of those words is QUEUE.
One very friendly definition of the word Queue is: a line or sequence of people or vehicles awaiting their turn to be attended to or to proceed. Doesn’t that sound civilized? It denotes an attitude of: I don’t mind at all waiting in this crowd to take care of business once I find myself at the front of the queue.
My husband and I had the experience of waiting in our vehicle for one hour in a 2-mile (3.2 km) queue the other day, trying to enter a Washington state national park. There wasn’t anything exciting – or relaxing – about the effort, but queuing is what we did.
Speaking of that national park, I love that parking lots in some countries are called car parks. It’s almost as though the vehicle is being treated to an entertaining adventure as we diligently park it within the lines of the designated spaces. And in some of those car parks, one can find trollies discarded by shoppers who have completed their weekly food shopping.
And the elevators found in the United States would be called lifts in the UK, and I must say, I am very much enamored by the thought of being given a lift somewhere, even if it’s just from one floor to another. Giving someone a lift is a courteous thing to do, don’t you think? “Why, thank you for the lift! That was very generous of you!”
The list of different terms that I am quite enamored with include: nappy instead of diaper, torch instead of flashlight, bin instead of trash (see what I mean by civilized?), and the favorite that I have found myself saying lately is knackered instead of exhausted. Like just the other day when we spent seven hours traveling to and from that US national park (1 hour of which was in a queue), my husband and I were absolutely 100% knackered by the time we arrived home to prepare our sandwich and chips and a glass of plonk after visiting the loo.
ANYWAY, I think you understand that countries have their own way of saying things, and such differences don’t bother me at all. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I am going to reward myself with a biscuit for completing this mini exposé and say bollocks to anyone who disagrees with me. Time to sit in front of the telly and relax a bit! Cheers and Bob’s your uncle!!!
A Drop in the Bucket
What a terrific resource water is. We rely on water for everything we do. If you don’t think that’s the case, I challenge you to think of one aspect of your life that doesn’t rely on water. Cue the Jeopardy jingle while we all wait…
EVERYTHING AND EVERYONE RELIES ON WATER!
I live in one of the Pacific Northwest states of the United States, and it is currently our summer season – the hottest time of year. While watering my plants last month, I was struck with gratitude as I watched the water soaking into the ground on its way to nourishing the flowers I love to see this time of year. That gratitude was truly front and center in my mind because it just so happened that my street block was on the verge of having its water shut off for an entire day because of a required water main repair down the road. All of us neighbors made arrangements to store water for that period of time and discerned what each household needed to make it through that day. Let me tell you, laundry was hastily completed, dishwashers were run, and household members scrambled to claim the toilet they would use because flushing of toilets would not be possible for at least six hours.
Stressful…right?
No industry exists without the availability of water. Again, wrack your brain to think of what on earth isn’t affected by water. Forget the Jeopardy jingle, that’s a waste of music because the answer is still:
EVERYTHING AND EVERYONE RELIES ON WATER!
But this post isn’t just focused on appreciating and conserving water; it’s also about increasing our ongoing efforts to cherish that with which we have been gifted: our living space and everything within that space on which we rely, our loved ones, or aspects of our health – even when we don’t enjoy a 100% healthy existence. May you and I continually cherish all that matters to us, including every breath we take, because even the latter does not come with an endless supply.
MAY YOU SURVIVE AND THRIVE WITH A HEIGHTENED SENSE OF GRATITUDE
NOW, AND ALWAYS.
Elemental Truths Behind Behavior
When there is spoiling in the world – whether found in the air, the ground itself, the water, or in the destructive power of fire – quality of life is seriously reduced in the spoiling.
There are other ways to spoil the world, however; spoiling that occurs as a result of words spoken or not spoken; of kindnesses withheld and cruelties expended. Just like earth’s elements, words and actions can cause grievous harm – or they can heal.
Earth. Fire. Air. Water. My research on these four elements revealed an interesting outcome: all four elements have the power to cleanse.
Additionally, the following qualities are attributed to these elements:
- Earth: order, structure, and stability.
- Fire: warmth, transformation, and the enabling of life.
- Water: healing and regeneration.
- Air: communication, intelligence, and harmony.
The world seems to have experienced a serious reduction in the level of qualities attributed to these elements. The unfortunate divisions that have always separated us appear to have widened and deepened, fueling a battle that should have never been raged.
We are not charged with making the entire world a better place in which to live – each of us need only attend to our miniscule corner of the world to accomplish such a task. It is my hope that the words we choose and the actions we take bring about a much-needed purification of this Earth, which leads me to this challenge for me and for you:
Do all the good that you can, in all the places you can, in all the ways that you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, for as long as you can. – John Wesley
This Week’s Good News!
The 50th anniversary of Earth Day occurred in April, but even with distancing restrictions, it was possible to honor our planet – and it still is – as seen in this story.
This Week’s Good News!
A young girl in the UK wants Crayola Crayons to improve its ecological footprint in her country. Check out her extraordinary efforts here. She is amazing!
Living: the ultimate team sport 