Sunday is Mother’s Day. It is a day full of feeling—of remembering our mothers, our grandmothers, Aunties, Tutus, and all those who “loved us into being” (Rogers, Fred). I propose to honor another mother: Our Mother Earth.
Images have flooded the internet of the clear blue sky behind the Taj Mahal; the Himalayas visible from afar; Los Angeles without smog; marine animals thriving because beaches are deserted. In Hawaii, the silence and clarity in the night sky is palpable; the stars more brilliant than ever.
This healing gift of Nature–these vistas obliterated by pollution now clear and majestic to behold—are revealed because humans ceased their busy-ness. As we tally the gifts and challenges of the pandemic, these gifts from Nature are indisputable: a natural world that keeps its magic, it’s beauty. How quickly Nature reclaimed herself.
What would we have to sacrifice to keep that—a cleaner planet— for our children and children’s children? Could we drive less, could we grow more of our own food, could we work from home? It seems so obvious; we can now SEE IT.
What is possible has now become visible. No more excuses, “..just too late to clean things up”. Humans stopped for about 6 weeks, and the air is a lot clearer and cleaner. It didn’t take years; it took an unpredictable lethal virus
And what about health? Does clean air make a difference? Air pollution is a killer. “The drops in air pollution in China from the lockdown likely saved between 53,000 and 77,000 lives, many times more than the direct toll of the virus ” says Marshall Burke, an Earth System’s Scientist at Stanford. Pollution made COVID-19 worse. Now, lockdowns are clearing the air.
This Mother’s day, take a few moments to breathe deeply the cleaner air. Pay attention to the feelings in your body, and to your body itself. Be barefoot if you can, grounding your energy into Terra Firma. Focus on your senses. Feel the stress and worry and static of the day dissipate into the earth.
This is divine reciprocity: we breath oxygen and exhale carbon dioxide. Our planet requires what we give, and in return gives what life on earth requires.
This Mother’s Day… thank ALL of your Mothers: the human ones and the One under your feet.
And forget not the earth
Delights to feel your bare feet and the
Winds long to play with your hair
~Khalil Gibran, The Prophet (1923)
Resources
- Mindfulness During COVID-19 by Deborah Eden
- The Center for Mind Body Medicine: Self-Care Resources