Yesterday I took a most satisfying and enjoyable walk in the woods.  The morning was windy and very cold.  But as I turned off the dirt road along the top of the ridge and descended along a trail, deeper into the woods, the wind’s might was chastened by the mountain and the trees. 

     After a few minutes, the frozen earth under my feet gave way to a springy, pleasant sponginess.  I looked down to see what was different on the trail and saw a long, broad swath of bright green, parts of it obscured by a fine layer of snow.  The moss, despite the cold, dry air, had kept its moist verdure.  And in the light film of snow were some faintly etched lines, crisscrossing each other here and there.  They resembled animal tracks, except they had no ’shape.’  I realized then that they had been made not by animals but by whorls of needles that had fallen from the pines and skidded across the thin layer of snow to create these little tracks.

     Then I noticed a tree I was happy to see, a witch hazel.  This slender, little tree that lives in our local forest is easily recognizable during the winter because it keeps its yellow ’flowers,’  unruly little  clusters of pencil-like petals going every which way.  I’m always happy to see a witch hazel because it’s one of the trees I can recognize without its leaves.  Somehow, knowing trees’ names makes me happy.  Why is that, I wonder.

     As I walked farther down the hill, toward the tiny stream that runs through the crevice between ridges, I came upon the giant anthills.  Ever since I first saw them 16 years ago, I have wondered why these huge anthills , a couple of feet tall and three or four feet wide, dot a single small area just uphill from the stream.  I assume the ants are interested in the stream water.  But there was no sign of life at any of the hills yesterday.  In fact, the tops of some had that abandoned home look; no one had been clearing the debris away from the door.  And I wondered, like Holden Caulfield wondered about the ducks in Central Park, what the ants do in the winter.  Do they hibernate?  Something to investigate. . . . .

     On my way back up the hill, I stopped to watch as a chickadee behaved in a curiously hummingbird-like fashion.  The bird perched on a branch.  Then it lifted into the air, almost stationary for a moment or two, with its fluttering wings a soft blur.  Then the bird ascended to a higher branch and perched.  Then it lifted again, ‘hovered,’ and chose yet a higher branch.  One more brief stop mid-air until it finally settled on a branch where it rested briefly before darting out of sight.

     Speaking of birds, I also watched as a pileated woodpecker did its little march, high up, tracing the circumference of a tree.  Dramatic both in size and color, pileated woodpeckers are most visible this time of year around here.  In fact, as I’ve been writing this, sitting in my living room, I’ve paused to look out the windows at three of these birds beating their heads against branches in trees near the house.  And do these birds ever work hard!  As their bright red crested heads pounded the branches, bits of wood burst forth and fall away.  I can’t imagine what it would feel like to get my food by beating my head against a tree!

                                                                                                                       

  

    

     The United States is moving ahead faster with eco-friendly energy alternatives than seemed possible just a year ago.  So says Lester Brown, president of the Earth Policy Institute.  He points to oil insecurity, fluctuating gas prices, and increasing concern about coal’s impact on climate change, as reasons for the rapid growth in cleaner, more earth-friendly energy alternatives. 

     Here are a few examples Brown cites as evidence of the hopeful shift he reports:

• Texas has overtaken California as the leading generator of electricity from wind.  With nearly 6,000 megawatts of wind-generated capacity online, Texas also has a staggering 39,000 megawatts in the construction and planning stages.  When all of the planned work is completed, Texas will be able to meet the electricity needs of all of its 24 million residents and to supplement electricity in bordering states.  Maine, New York, Delaware, and Oregon are also moving rapidly to expand their wind-generating capacity.
• “Solar power is expanding at a breakneck pace,” says Brown.  He notes that Pacific Gas & Electric has entered into solar cell power contracts for two plants that will have a combined peak power output equal to that of a large coal-fired plant.
• Geothermal energy is also developing at an explosive rate.  The nation’s current 3,000 megawatts of geothermal generating capacity will double soon, when the 96 geothermal plants now in development are completed.  With California, Nevada, Oregon, Idaho, and Utah leading the way, the stage is set for massive future development of geothermal energy.

     Brown notes that to take full advantage of these exciting developments in alternative energy, a national grid is needed.  And while private individuals are investing in long-distance, high-voltage, transmission lines, these lines must be incorporated into a carefully-planned national grid if we are to take full advantage of our country’s tremendous potential energy wealth. 

     I am hopeful that the Obama administration will act decisively to build on this encouraging sudden growth in the development of alternative energies.

    

     I thank Tanya Bohlke for sending me this prayer.  To me, it speaks directly of the peace and connection available to us when we open to the natural world around us.–April Moore

     Deep peace of the running wave to you.
     Deep peace of the flowing air to you.
     Deep peace of the quiet earth to you.
     Deep peace of the shining stars to you.
     Deep peace of the gentle night to you.
Moon and stars pour their healing light on you.
Deep peace of the Light of the World to you.

    Now that the season of giving gifts is upon us, I would like to share a piece I wrote for my husband Andy Schmookler’s website www.NoneSoBlind.org many months ago.  Perhaps you will find in it some food for thought.  Just click on the link below.–April Moore

http://www.nonesoblind.org/blog/index.php?s=Donations+Instead+of+Gifts

     I was startled when I first looked at some of these photos.  The happiness on the face of the chimp as she plays with these baby Siberian tigers is completely human.  The chimp is expressing pure pleasure;  she delights in these babies of a different species.   She recognizes them as her relatives, as I recognize her as my own close relative.–April Moore 

     As we gather soon with loved ones to give thanks and to enjoy being together, I offer these beautiful words.  They are from the book Earth Prayers From Around the World, edited by Elizabeth Roberts and Elias Amidon.

     “Belonging is the basic truth of our existence.  We belong here.  Life belongs here.  Likewise, at the heart of gratefulness, in its deepest sense, we also find an expression of belonging.  When we say “Thank you” we really are saying “We belong together.”  That is why we sometims find it so difficult to say “Thank you”–because we don’t want to acknowledge our interdependence.  We don’t want to be obliged.  But in a healthy society that is exactly what we seek:  mutual obligations.  Everyone is obliged to everyone and everything else;  we all belong together, we are of each other.  In this awareness we are freed from self-preoccupation–and only then, emptied of self, can we be filled with thanks.  As Brother David Steindl-Rast tells us, “Love whole-heartedly, be surprised, give thanks and praise–then you will discover the fullness of your life.”

     “Within this human impulse to gratitude flow the vast cycles of universal reciprocity–for everything that is taken, something has to be given in return.  If you merely take in a breath and stop there, you will die.  Likewise if you merely breathe out.  Life is not giving or taking, but give and take.  This is the dynamic expression of universal belonging expressed in our thanksgiving.

We give-away our thanks to the earth
     which gives us our home.
We give-away our thanks to the rivers and lakes
     which give-away their water.
We give-away our thanks to the trees
     which give-away fruit and nuts. . . .

All beings on earth:  the trees, the animals, the wind
     and the rivers give-away to one another
     so all is in balance. . . .
(Dolores LaChapelle)

     “In the midst of a pragmatic world in which we constantly ask ourselves how “useful” things are, these prayers may seem “useless.”  Yet perhaps the greatest gift we humans have to offer the rest of creation is our heartfelt appreciation.  The ability to receive in thankfulness the blessings of life is an awesome quality.  We alone on this planet can reflect on all that surrounds us and through our loving recognition the rest of the Earth achieves a deep fulfillment.

Earth isn’t this what you want:  invisibly
to arise in us?
(Rainer Maria Rilke)

     “Our praise and thanksgiving is as essential a part of life’s give and take as are the cycles of oxygen and water or any other nourishment flowing through the biosphere.”

     I feel that with the election of Barack Obama as President, we have entered a time of great hope and optimism.  I am hopeful that our new President will act decisively to make the United States the world leader it should be in stopping global warming. 

     Below is a link to a piece Al Gore wrote in the New York Times.  He too is hopeful that an Obama presidency will mean significant action on the greatest challenge of our times. 

     I find Al Gore’s words stirring.–April Moore

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/09/opinion/09gore.html

     There is some great but overlooked news from the recent election.  Most of the land conservation measures on ballots across the country passed!  Of the 87 municipal, county, and state conservation measures on the ballot in many locations, voters approved 62 of them, or 71%!  Added together, these measures ensure that $7.3 billion in new public funds will be spent to protect land for parks and open space.  The election set a conservation funding record, according to the Trust for Public Land (TPL), a national land conservation organization.

     A few highlights: 

• In New Jersey, voters approved 14 of 22 county and municipal measures that will mean an additional $191 million in conservation funding.  In Hunterdon County, for example, voters extended the Hunterdon County Open Space Trust Fund, which will generate $7.6 million annually for open space, farmland, historic preservation efforts, and stewardship of county and municipal parklands.
• In Minnesota, voters approved the Clean Water, Land, and Legacy Amendment, the largest land conservation measure in history, according to TPL.  With more than $5 billion approved for land and water conservation, the measure will increase the state’s investment in clean water, natural areas, cultural legacy, parks, and trails by $290 million a year for the next 25 years. 
• In Ohio, voters approved a $400 million bond referendum to renew the Clean Ohio Fund.  And Rhode Island voters said yes to $2.5 million for farmland and natural area preservation.

     It is heartening to me to see that, despite the current economic climate, an overwhelming majority of voters want to protect our precious lands and waters.–April Moore 

    

     Last Saturday was a moist, warmish, fall day.  My husband and I took a break from cutting and carrying firewood to sit for a bit on the bench at the top of our driveway.  From there, we could take in the view of the ridge known as Great North Mountain, and the whole tree-covered valley between us and the mountain.  The air felt almost balmy, and it was a pleasure to gaze out at the muted greens, the now-dominant browns, and the trees that were already bare.

     I almost always find when I’m outdoors, that the more I look, the more I see.  This day was no exception.  As I sat, I began to notice movement in a couple of the trees below.  The movement was accompanied by some soft cheeping sounds.  I watched as several birds, silhouettes from my vantage point, flittered about, settling on one branch, and then maybe another.  These birds were joined by several more birds, then more, and still more. 

     Their crested, slightly elongated figures combined with the dark branches to form a graceful shape against the sky.  What were these birds?  Could they be titmice? (What a name for a bird!)  They seemed a little too slender for that.  Could they be jays? 

     A little later, back at the house, I noticed that the same small flock was now flitting about in a pear tree by the deck.  And now I could get a good look at them.  They were cedar waxwings!  I have long had a great fondness for those tawny birds with their fierce-looking crests and eyes masked in a black stripe.  But I didn’t remember seeing cedar waxwings around here.  Maybe they had been eating the red berries from the small Rose of Sharon tree next to the pear.  

     I took full advantage of this rare opportunity to watch cedar waxwings up close.  I hadn’t realized before just how beautiful they are.  Their tails were tipped with yellow, their wings with red, and their backs sported a little bit of white. 

     The birds disappeared soon after that.  I learned from my bird book that a flock of cedar waxwings may suddenly appear in an area, devour the available berries, and then depart just as suddenly.  And that must be what happened, because I haven’t seen a single cedar waxwing since that day.

     My delightful experience on Saturday is a reminder to me of just how much is going on in the natural world at any given moment, and how things are changing all the time.  The cedar waxwings’ visit to our place was fleeting, and I would have missed it entirely had I not taken a little time out of my ‘busyness’ to sit outside and look around.–April Moore

      

      Every time we enter the grocery store, we make choices that affect the environment.  Some purchases are easier on the earth, and others are more harmful.  In terms of vegetables and fruits, one might assume that fresh is best for Mother Earth.  But, like many seemingly simple things, the truth is more complicated.  I addressed this question in my book THE EARTH AND YOU:  EATING FOR TWO, published in the 90s by Potomac Valley Press:

     When bought and eaten soon after harvesting, fresh produce is the most healthful and delicious way to eat fruits and vegetables.  Such produce is better for the earth as well because it is more likely to have been locally grown.  That means little energy was spent in transport, and little or no packaging is needed.  Even more important, both for you and the earth, is the fact that locally grown produce is less likely to have been heavily treated with pesticides.

     But if you think that fresh produce is always better for the earth than frozen or canned, read on.  The truth is more complicated!

     Fresh tomatoes or strawberries bought in January are usually imported from Mexico or other foreign countries.  The environmental costs are the tremendous expense and pollution associated with fossil fuel for transportation and the degradation of land and water through intensive pesticide use.  In general, imported produce is much more likely to contain pesticide residues than are domestically grown fruits and vegetables.  During the winter months it is probably better for the earth and you to go easy on fresh vegetables and fruits.

     Frozen vegetables and fruits can be a good buy, both for you and the earth.  Boxes and bags of frozen produce are only lightly processed and so retain most of their nutritional value.  And they are inexpensive too.  During the winter especially, fresh produce may be substantially more expensive than frozen.

     What about canned vegetables and fruits?  Are they as good a choice as frozen?  Nutritionally speaking, canned foods are slightly inferior to fresh and frozen.  Most canned vegetables are fairly high in salt, and the vegetables are usually overcooked.  Canned fruits are often packed in sugary syrup.

     In terms of the environment, there are a few small advantages and disadvantages to both canned and frozen fruits and vegetables.  Canned foods have the advantage that their containers are more easily recycled than the cardboard boxes and plastic bags in which frozen vegetables and fruits are sold.  And canned fruits and vegetables require no refrigeration or freezing.  But the labels on many cans are made with inks containing lead, cadmium, and other heavy metals that may leach into groundwater.

     Frozen vegetables have the advantage of being more healthful than overcooked, salty, canned vegetables.  Yet frozen foods require a great deal of energy to keep them frozen from the time they are processed until they are transported to stores, sold, and eaten.  However, since almost all refrigerators have an attached freezer anyway, buying and storing frozen foods uses no extra energy.  In fact, a full freezer uses less energy than an empty one.  Only when a separate freezer is used do frozen vegetables use a great deal of energy.  A stand-alone freezer can be one of the most energy-consuming pieces of equipment a household can operate.

     While frozen vegetables and fruits can be a good choice for health–yours and the earth’s, the good news does not apply to all frozen foods.  Many frozen entrees, microwavable frozen dinners, and frozen snack foods are excessively packaged and high in fat, salt, and sugar.  Simple is better.

YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE