Pedro Sanchez, the Prime Minster of Spain & Hope

Dear Partners in Green,

When I become particularly disheartened by the effects of man-made Climate Change on our planet, and the future that our descendants will be facing, I look for signs of hope; hope, that necessary ingredient which can supply the energy to keep going: to continue composting and adjusting the thermostat, to continue refraining from excessive traveling and habitual shopping, to continue speaking up and demanding change.

But it is not an easy task when it seems we are intentionally inundated by ubiquitous distractions: the pool, the gold coins, the Kennedy Center, and the Ballroom, when there are so many other concerns that we should be focusing on, the most serious being Climate Change which Trump has continuously denied.

Trump’s denial is certainly in contrast to Pedro Sanchez, the Prime Minster of Spain who, regarding the fires in Spain and France, was quoted by NPR as saying “The evidence is clear: the climate emergency kills. That is why it is not enough simply to deal with consequences. We must tackle the root causes, anticipate the consequences and better prepare our country to protect people lives.”

And we need to keep speaking about Climate Change with friends and neighbors, having conversations, finding common ground. We must write and call politicians. We must be the “squeaky wheel,” for squeaky wheels do get the grease, and people who protest loudly and post on line do get heard.

Be encouraged by learning about what young people throughout the world are doing and share what you learn. In our world there are 1.8 billion young people between the ages of 10 and 24, and young people are aware of the challenges and risks of Climate Change. They know that it is here, they know what is at stake. They are picking up the torch. And that gives me hope.

May we all be of use.

To Be of Use

by
 
Marge Piercy



The people I love the best


jump into work head first


without dallying in the shallows


and swim off with sure strokes almost out of sight.


 They seem to become natives of that element,


the black sleek heads of seals


bouncing like half-submerged balls.





I love people who harness themselves, an ox to a heavy cart,


who pull like water buffalo, with massive patience,


who strain in the mud and the muck to move things forward,


who do what has to be done, again and again.





I want to be with people who submerge


in the task, who go into the fields to harvest


and work in a row and pass the bags along,


who are not parlor generals and field deserters


but move in a common rhythm


when the food must come in or the fire be put out.



 

The work of the world is common as mud.


Botched, it smears the hands, crumbles to dust.


 But the thing worth doing well done


has a shape that satisfies, clean and evident.


Greek amphoras for wine or oil,


Hopi vases that held corn, are put in museums


but you know they were made to be used.


The pitcher cries for water to carry


and a person for work that is real.





From Circles on the Water: Selected Poems of Marge Piercy


(Alfred A. Knopf, 1982).


Thank you for being on this journey. Wishing peace and health to you and your loved ones.

Till next time, Beth