Are we at a time again in modern history when planting a tree or sowing a butterfly garden, and building a bird or bat nesting box can be taken to be political acts?
What if we fostered a culture in which we invested more in trying to heal the damage done to the earth rather than doing more damage or simply shrugging it off and saying that our own behaviors have nothing to do with the accelerating rate of the earth’s demise?
Even when (or if) one of us begins a planting or restorative act with a flawed or self-righteous attitude, I sense that sticking with it–watching a planted tree grow and adapt to its new conditions–ultimately grounds us or humbles us.
Perhaps we need to engage daily or weekly in such small gestures of ecological empathy less for the future of other species themselves and more to redirect and leaven the future of our own species.
What will be the first thing you plant in the ground for the coming year?
-Brother Coyote
