Earth Day 2021 © Jane Sherry April 22, 2021
Earth. Remember; there is one; an Earth,
beneath your feet, and all around. And sky.
Perhaps a pandemic has forced you
to go outside. Outside of your comfort zone, your
office tower, your once busy schedule and see there-
it is earth. Feel the earth beneath your feet.
Feel the wheeling stars overhead. See the stars
have fallen to the ground, a blanket of flowers.
For you.
Our earth, our only real home, offers comfort.
Comfort to the bored, the bereaved, the lost, those
without structure to their day, those too alone. Perhaps
you planted a garden, visited a forest, played in the leaves
last fall, when all looked bleak, and came, perhaps
to depend on the nurturing pace of the natural world.
For you.
Discover trees. They are a community, not singular beings.
Hear the birds sing. There are still birds, there are still
creatures in our web of life. Their stories will unfold;
Listen to the stories the animals tell you, know this-
there is wisdom and happiness there in those creatures
large or small, winged or four legged, plant or rock.
They are our community in our everyday world.
For you.
Remember the wisdom stories in the teachings
of the earth, in the non human beings; remember to
listen to the stories of Native peoples, those who came
before. Remember there is sentience in the animals-
silence and song, not just our human voice.
Not just the machine voice, nor the staccato of our repetitive
daily tasks. Remember and add joy into those tasks.
Remember to listen to the songs of mystery and Joy that
is Life on Planet Earth. And to give honor, to plant seeds.
For us all.
Photo Credits: All pics taken by myself, Jane Sherry in the glorious Winston Salem, NC, Autumn is from Elk Knob, all seasons of the year, honoring our Earth. With the exception of the picture of me sitting on the magnificent evergreen Magnolia Grandiflora at the old city hall in downtown Winston taken by Curtis Lang.