Is it me or does anyone else see irony in the way we humans wring our hands over climate change but do little about it while at the same time, we expend great amounts of energy to preserve our health? Today there are electronic gadgets that measure every facet of our anatomy, our heart beats per minute, our temperature, our blood pressure and so forth, but If a tree falls in the forest, how much do we care?
The market place is rife with personal trainers to assist in our obsession with self, coaches for our minds, bodies and our investments. But who coaches us about the state of carbon emissions? We probably spend more time on fad diets, cleansing enemas and yoga breathing than we do thinking about the quality of the air around us. Why?
Joe Keenan has given thought to my question. He believes we gravitate to trainers and coaches because, for an hour or two, they makes us feel we are the center of the universe. They listen to our concerns, draft regimens to help us live better and in sum, they allow us to be “heroes in our own stories” (“The Me Diet,” by Joe Keenan, Town&Country June/July 2014 pg. 153.) Eating quantities of parsley and yogurt gives us bragging rights about being in charge of our lives, something we can’t say about climate change.
But what if we directed all that energy we devote to ourselves in an effort to save the planet? Could we accomplish the desired change?
Keenan thinks it’s possible. He hopes the current health craze will cause us to pay more attention to how food is grown. When that happens, we may awake to other environmental issues like preserving the rain forests and attending to the melting polar ice caps. (Ibid, pg. 154) According to him, a new guru stands in the wings ready to stroke our egos and teach us a new respect for the planet. That guru is the organic farmer.
(Courtesy of www.acneeinstein.com)
