Surviving The Fall, 21

It is to easy to get angry, grumpy and miserable about everything, decide that the world is incurably going to hell and then refuse to get out of bed and simply wait and whine and whimper while expecting the world to come to a fast and decisive end. But it is not going to happen that way. We still have to live on this planet, as long as it can sustain us and after that there will be no intergalactic refuge. We are part of this planet. We are of this planet. From this Earth we sprang and to this earth shall we return. And now we are miserable about global warming and planet change, about pipelines, about the economy, about war and conflict, about President Dump, the Great Deplorable in the Outhouse (Oops, I mean the White House) and with things as they are, how can we possibly expect to come out alive, or at least with good skin? But we always do, and no we cannot forecast the future, regardless of how accurate the scientific models because there are always variables and the universe always has its sucker punches. I have decided that I am not going to worry. That isn't the same as denial. I am well aware of what is wrong in our world, in my country, my province and my city, and I stay up to date and I even try to nag elected officials about whatever I am able to nag them about, but for me, joy is the fuel in my engine and it is environmentally friendly, renewable and does absolutely nothing to contribute to climate change and without joy I would probably stay in bed and whimper. Love is the source of this joy. It is the same love that makes me outraged and angry about the social injustice in our cities and communities, the inequality, the poverty and homelessness and the shameless wealthy burghers who flaunt door-sized signs of protest in front of their mansions protesting tiny property tax hikes on their lavish palaces just so that people less fortunate can do a bit better. The world is not necessarily a worse place than it was a hundred years ago. We do have a lot more people and that creates its own hazard, and this is also accelerating climate change and global warming, so we are facing threats and challenges heretofore unprecedented. But, there is less hunger. less war, more democracy. greater education, and more human rights, as well as a generally better quality of life, than what was enjoyed by any previous generations. We also have some much bigger problems as I have already indicated. We also have instant access to global news, twenty-four/seven and this makes us paralyzed with fear and dread because we are not biologically or evolutionarily designed to absorb or sustain this kind of onslaught of information. So, Gentle Reader, get out of bed. Have a shower, eat a nice nutritious breakfast and get your sorry heiny outside and breathe in the fresh air. Give thanks for something, even if it's just the fact that you woke up breathing this morning. Take a few steps. Stop. Breathe, give thanks again. We will get through this.