Happy Earth Day!

My Earth Day began bright and early with a cup of coffee, the dogs, and my laptop. The sun was already saturating the house, and it was completely still. Bleary-eyed, I dove into the 10 or so email boxes, blogs, store fronts, and whatnots that occupy my every morning.

Cole and I had already made plans to cut out early and hit the zoo, so I was in a really great frame of mind. And then I checked my facebook page.

It is my sincerest and most regretful belief that some people are put on this Earth to buzz kill everything that is beautiful, progressive, and intelligent in our society. Their plight in life is to inflict their negativity and small-mindedness on those of us seeking true enlightenment and awareness. Inflict and infect is their mission.

So, one of these Buzz Killers posted a status today that said something like:

"So and so hates when people worship the created (Earth) and not the creator (God)."

My first reaction was a rather sardonic sneer in response to this person's need to define his hatred so specifically. This obviously is not a person who wants others thinking for themselves. Control. Control. Control.

My second thought was, "Goodness. I don't like 'hate' and 'God' in the same sentence."

Sends shivers down my spine. Hello, folks? Can you say Middle East? Hitler? Croatia? The Black List? What is with this mental genocide from a so-called God-lover? I think it's sad when one's religious, political, or otherwise strongly-held beliefs lead to hate in any form. It sickens and sometimes frightens me when God is used as a rationalization for calculated condensation of those who do not share similar beliefs on any public platform (and over something so positive!).

Okay, okay. He's just referring to Earth Day, but this type of attitude gets me all riled up, especially when aimed in direction of a NECESSARY, BEAUTIFUL, INTELLIGENT, GLOBAL COMMUNITY EFFORT TO BETTER THE PLANET FOR ALL PEOPLE, OUR CHILDREN, AND FUTURE GENERATIONS OF HUMAN BEINGS, ANIMALS, AND PLANTS.

Sure, Earth Day has become just as commercialized as religion, but the intent of Earth Day is to bring awareness to the increasingly rapid decline of our HOME PLANET to which we contribute a great deal and to incite people to WAKE UP, TAKE IT SERIOUSLY, AND CONTRIBUTE.

A Little History of Earth Day from the Earth Day Network:

Earth Day -- April 22 -- each year marks the anniversary of the birth of the modern environmental movement in 1970.

Among other things, 1970 in the United States brought with it the Kent State shootings, the advent of fiber optics, "Bridge Over Troubled Water," Apollo 13, the Beatles' last album, the death of Jimi Hendrix, the birth of Mariah Carey, and the meltdown of fuel rods in the Savannah River nuclear plant near Aiken, South Carolina -- an incident not acknowledged for 18 years.

It was into such a world that the very first Earth Day was born.

Earth Day founder Gaylord Nelson, then a U.S. Senator from Wisconsin, proposed the first nationwide environmental protest "to shake up the political establishment and force this issue onto the national agenda. " "It was a gamble," he recalls, "but it worked."

So, Mr. Buzz Killer, open the windows of your mind and let in a little fresh air. Study a little history and science (they really can co-exist with religion) and realize we're caring for this Planet and its inhabitants for you and your children and your grandchildren even if you're too narrow-minded to give a shit. You may have inflicted, but you have not infected.

Cole and I went on to have a FABULOUS Earth Day at the zoo and wondered at the marvels of Nature, the beauty around us, and enjoyed each other's company.

We had intelligent conversations about why we celebrate Earth Day, why our Planet and its inhabitants are a true miracle and should be cared for as such, and about how observing Earth Day provides a sense of Community in a shared global mission that enables activism on a level and with an impact otherwise unachievable.

I have no doubt the occasion of Earth Day provided similar such experiences for people around the world - um, us non-Buzz Killers that is - and I'd bet plenty of God-worshiping individuals included.

I'm proud to say my 11 year old is quite a Go-Greener himself. He JUST informed me we are turning all of the lights of for one minute at 8pm in observation. Heathens, I know!

BTW, Cole and I particularly loved the Red Pandas and the un-fenced Kangaroos who hung out with us on the path today! KC Zoo looks GREAT!