December 14th: An Environmental Holiday Season

7.9 billion people live on Mother Earth. Along side us humans there is wildlife- mammals, birds, sea-life, amphibians, insects, marsupials, plants, and other critters. Together we share this planet.

You’ve probably read or heard before a speech about the importance of maintaining, healing, and preserving the only inhabitable planet that we know of. That without the support of Mother Earth with her oxygen, water, nutrients, minerals, and bearable temperatures- human beings wouldn’t live.

You may have even heard about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. In reality, a massive quantity of garbage debris resulting in the size of Texas, times 2. This debris not only pollutes our water but provides a high mortality rate to the wildlife that swims and flies overhead.

With the sheer size of pre-existing damage, not to mention the sheer size of a planet that is home to 7.9 billion people, it can be easy to feel overwhelmed. To lose sight of hope and faith that in time, we will set things right and that Mother Earth will heal.

In reality, it is not the grand gestures of money or the great big actions of giving up the “modern way of life” that will re-shape the world we live in. Instead, it is the daily actions that we choose.

The health of our planet is not a solution solved with a surgery, but with a lifestyle change. When we as individuals choose a lifestyle that is environmentally conscious without being radical, we not only can improve our quality of life and still enjoy modern pleasures, but we can also positively impact the globe.

We share this planet with 7.9 billion people – 1. The responsibility for the globe does not rest on our shoulders alone.

When we shift this perception, we remove that heaviness and hopelessness, and we become empowered. You have power over you and your own life. You are responsible for your own actions, which means that you can make positive changes in your life.

Ideas for Being Environmental:

This holiday season, I encourage you to not only revel in Christmas cheer and the Christmas spirit, but I also encourage you to choose a holiday style that is environmentally conscious. And do what you can.

Lifestyle changes don’t happen overnight, but rather happen through time and dedication. So, which of these ideas can you implement this holiday season?

Reduce the Waste:

How can you reduce the amount of waste you and your family are creating?

This can include choosing gifts that come in less plastic packaging, or even wrapping and shipping your gifts using less plastic and more paper (which can be recycled).

Or you can purchase recycled Christmas cards.

When you look around you and set out to complete the things on your holiday “to-do” list, how can you positively impact your choices?

Choose LED:

My family and I absolutely love Christmas lights. Between the joy and celebration that they bring and the beauty of colorful lights in contrast to snow, my family deck the halls, and house, and yard, and backyard in light.

While it might not be the first thing to come to mind, electricity can negatively impact Mother Earth. Between fossil fuel, coal, and dams some of the methods utilized to create our energy leaves a negative impact on the globe.

So this holiday season, how can you reduce the electrical impact while also still enjoying the lights and glitter?

My family chooses to purchase LED lights, which are much more efficient. We also have purchased timers that not only turn the lights on for us but shuts them off in six hours. While the amount of energy used to light one house all night might not be much, if you combine my house with all the other houses decked out in Christmas lights- how much energy was used?

This holiday season also think outside of the Christmas lighting and maybe consider the lightbulbs in your home. Turning the lights off when you leave the room, leaving the coffee pot, toaster, and even microwave unplugged till you need it is another great way to reduce needless use of power.

Consider Your Gift Wrapping:

When I was in high school my best friend’s family ran out of Christmas wrapping paper. So, to improvise she wrapped my Christmas present in duct tape and had a lot of fun. As a result, it became a tradition between the two of us, to always wrap presents in duct tape.

In retrospect, while fun, this was not very environmentally conscious. This holiday season, consider how you are wrapping your gifts.

Can you utilize paper instead of plastic? How about fabric instead of paper? Can you accomplish a beautiful present with less?

Save Your Gifts and The Paper:

Another great way of reducing the cost and waste of Christmas, is to save what you can from the gifts you receive. Now I know for kids, half the fun is ripping the paper in-two.

But as adults, can you save the paper, the tissue paper, the gift bag, or the gift box? Can you pull out and recycle what you can?

Not only does this reduce the waste accumulated Christmas morning, but it reduces the cost come next Christmas, because you’ll have reusable gift bags and tissue paper.

Chop-Up Your Tree for Kindling:

In family we use a real tree for Christmas. There is something about the smell and sight that a fake tree cannot compete with.

That being said, we can do more than just throw away the tree at the end of the holiday season. You can cut up the branches and trunk to be utilized as firewood and kindling. Or you can compost your tree.

Another great idea is to purchase a live tree and at the end of Christmas plant it.

Carpool:

My last recommendation this holiday season is to carpool. With all the family gatherings and shows to see, can you carpool?

With one less car out driving, you reduce the carbon monoxide released into the air. This reduces the amount of carbon the trees need to recycle to create oxygen.

This small act can not only get you where you want to go but can positively impact the world.

It is through these small and manageable lifestyle changes that we alter the way we live and as a result, the condition of the world. I would also mention here that it is not just lifestyle changes on the part of human beings (wildlife already has it down), we are also supported by our spiritual family.

Mother Earth not only is a part of our spiritual family, but connected with the angels, spirit guides, and Spirit. As we transition into the Aquarian Age, Mother Earth will continue to heal and flourish. It is still important that we each take responsibility for our influence, but you need not feel alone. We’re all in this together.