Hope for the children

My granddaughter Christa celebrated her 11th birthday on Christmas. We sang Happy Birthday and enjoyed a special cake that my wife Penny had prepared for the occasion, one in the shape of the earth, its continents and oceans made of blue, white and green icing.

Before she cut her cake, Christa surprised us, delivering a short, passionate speech about the global climate crisis. 

Scientists, based on sound evidence, say that the earth’s climate is warming rapidly, primarily caused by the burning of fossils fuels for energy, spewing carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, along with the release of methane by livestock and from pipelines. These emissions trap heat, raising the earth’s temperature. 

As a consequence, ocean temperatures are rising, leading to the destruction of coral reefs and other sea life. Arctic ice is melting, raising sea levels. Rising waters swallow islands and coastlines. Drought-stricken Australia is in flames, leading to the loss of some one billion animals there. Whole species are disappearing. Once-fertile farmland is turning into deserts. Hurricanes and tornadoes are becoming more frequent and devastating.

Meanwhile, government at nearly every level, instead of acknowledging these and other truths about the climate crisis, denies them and, worse, exacerbates the crisis by its policies. Bowing to petroleum and coal interests, the Trump administration eliminates or ignores environmental regulations, actions that contribute to the poisoning of our water, air, soil—and us. It stifles independent scientific research. It suppresses the release of reports that warn of global warming and its harms, and it tells us, falsely, that taking care of the earth will cost jobs and stifle economic growth, when the opposite is true. Green jobs mean a viable, prosperous America. 

Christa’s birthday speech challenged me and reminded me that I am a steward of the earth. We all are. This earth is not ours. “The earth is the Lord’s,” Psalm 24 says, “and all that is in it.” Genesis says that God, the creator of everything, makes us responsible for caring for his creation. 

As stewards of creation, then, we must act now to protect and preserve it.  We can recycle and reuse. Penny gave me cloth bags for fruits and vegetables to replace plastic ones at the grocery. I take along other reusable bags for shopping. We can add more fruits and vegetables to our diets and eat less meat. We can buy energy-efficient cars and products. We can learn about the climate crisis. We can vote for honest leaders who will be faithful stewards of creation. We can multiply our power by joining groups that are saving the earth. Renew Missouri, which promotes renewable energy and energy efficiency statewide, is one such group. 

I am acting now for the future. I want Christa, my three other grandchildren, the children of this and subsequent generations to celebrate many birthdays to come on this, God’s earth.