She's Our Planet

I’m just in from today’s walk, which included some barefoot moments on a sandy inlet along the lovely Kinnickinnic River. Being barefoot on Earth Day seemed wonderfully appropriate. That direct connection to the planet always inspires and calms me. I feel literally grounded.

The weather for my Earth Day walk and barefoot connection was stellar. Low 60’s, bright warm sun, a few puffy clouds meandering in a blue sky and a light breeze. There’s a big sense of spring in the air—geese squabbling for nesting territory, ducks ignoring geese, geese ignoring ducks, a kingfisher darting about with exquisite precision, anglers angling, red-winged blackbirds singing and a lovely girl, maybe twelve or thirteen, building cairns in the boulder field below the dam.

I stopped to compliment the young artist and to attest that I think cairns are cool. It seemed too much to let her know how cairns have saved me many times from wandering off trail into unmarked territory where I could damage a fragile ecosystem and also myself. She was a thoughtful artist, placing each rock with skill, tenderness, a cocked head and a sense of curiosity. She would stand back and look at her work and nod her head silently if it met with her approval. It met with mine and I feel very strongly that it met with Earth’s approval as well.

Pausing the pace of the day with a walk is a sacrosanct practice of mine. Today was an especially meaningful walk as it is Earth Day and on Earth Day I feel a particular gratitude for our planet, our one and only very special, very beautiful planet. On my return walk I thought about the cairn builder and how her work honored Earth, which brought up the question of how I’m honoring Earth, which led to a simple yet satisfying action. I logged on to the National Park Foundation and became a monthly donor. To my delight, in honor of Earth Day, the National Park Foundation’s Board of Directors will triple every donation, dollar-for-dollar, up to $100,000. Consider making a donation—it’s well worth it.

This Earth of ours deserves to be honored today and every day. Here in the United States our National Parks do just that by providing places to fall in love with nature, wildlife, and our own wild-at-heart nature. Aren’t we blessed?

I hope that today found you outside, feet on the planet, feeling grateful, feeling blessed, feeling connected. She’s our planet after all, and she’s always there, ready when you are.