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As I write this, I can hear the little mama sparrow chirping outside my corner front window. She and her partner have been busy building a nest in the corner overhang between our apartment and the one next door, much to the great interest of my kitty cat, Tessa. We’ll definitely be keeping that window closed for the birds’ sake. Along with the many robins I’ve seen happily bob-bob-bobbing along recently, spring definitely is making itself known, despite even some late April snow this week. Earth Day is always a pleasant turning point to mark this occasion, because the gaiety and frolic of Beltane/May Day is soon to follow, and that brings a smile to my face.

Now more than ever, the earth is crying out for our help. Natural disasters have become an unnatural common occurrence on every corner of the globe. To turn a blind eye on what we see going on around us every day, even if it doesn’t effect us directly, is akin to being the monkey who sees no evil until it is too late. Our neglect and willful ignorance on this matter is most definitely to our own peril. The common question is often, “Well, what can I do? What small difference can I make?” A lot my friends, a lot. Every little bit helps. According to recent expert reports, at this point we have roughly three years to act, otherwise we’re pretty much screwed. Of course, we already should have been taking steps back in the 70s when the first Earth Day was introduced by Environmentalist Senator Gaylord Nelson, from my home state of Wisconsin, no less, but we still have a small window to make an impact.

GET INVOLVED

Many communities have river cleanups and activities not just today, but throughout the year. Look up what’s going on close to home and start there.

"Every day is Earth Day to a Pagan," quipped our recent podcast guest, Amanda Marie Parker, aka Belle Be Damned. The latter moniker is her burlesque stage name in the Houston-based troupe, Bewitched Burlesque. A creative brainchild of Parker and Jessica Anderson of the Thorn and Moon Magical Market, they are now performing socially safe, in-person shows after launching virtually a year ago* in the wake of the pandemic. Parker also performs in Houston with Strange Bird Immersive, which recently a shout-out from The New York Times. Strange Bird Immersive includes Bradley Winkler, who acts with them and also handles some sound design, PR, and marketing. A longtime actor and friend of mine, Bradley and I met in the Boulevard Theatre community here in Milwaukee. He was the one who had the foresight to introduce Amanda and I for a podcast chat.

 What Can We Do?

Amanda has a point about Earth Day that is easy to forget. We should be mindfully living with reverence for Mother Earth each day with gentle and kind intent. If it weren't for her, we wouldn't be here after all! Whether it's keeping up with our recycling, using non-toxic products in our food purchases and lawn care, carpooling, biking, and hoofing it whenever possible, or making a point to clean up trash in our local waterways and parks, there are so many ways we can help. Make no mistake, it's never too late to make a difference and if enough of us do, it can still make enough of an impact to heal some of what we've wreaked over time. We owe it to the young people in our lives that we cherish, as well as the animals, trees, and all of earth's living creatures dependent on her intricate ecosystem.

How can you write with 
flowered praise
of shining skies and magic days?
Don’t you know
there are bones in the grass
and fear in the air
and things that lurk on every stem
to suck your blood?
Snakes are eating baby birds
and a bobcat is even now
crushing through the skulls
of a nest of soft baby rabbits.
How dare you claim there
is beauty, that the world
is woven from love?
I claim it
because I see it.
Yes, I’ve dripped blood
on stones as thorns drag
across tender flesh,
uncovered worn femurs and ragged hip bones in fallen leaves,
scratched my own ankles bloody
after being fed upon as I walk.
I have faced unnamed skulls on mossy beds,
small jaws cracked in two,
a pelvis resting nearby
catching the rays of the setting sun.
I’ve wept over shattered eggs
and the blue jay’s screaming.
I have also borne witness to
endless
joy.
The mother deer nestling
twin fawns by her side,
the riotous blooms
blanketing the thorns,
the courtship dance of red-shouldered hawks
as they spin across the sky,
vultures skating gracefully
on thin air,
violets blooming in
the center of stones,
blue butterflies and singing bees
across the plum blossoms.
I know there are phoebes who return
year after year
to the nest they’ve built
sheltered under our eaves,
and hummingbirds that traverse endless miles
to alight on our windchimes
and to live in the mulberry trees
all summer,
our feeders their ancestral lands.
I have spotted rich mushrooms nestled impossibly
in curving roots of elm and ash,
I’ve plunged my arms into
ancient water
fresh born from between
the earth’s bones.
I’ve come eye to eye
with crows, black eyes alert,
wings shining,
with a coyote,
both of our heads lifting
to sniff the air.
I’ve eaten redbud flowers
straight from the branch
and watched the swift and patient passage of time
across the faces of those I love.
If there is one thing I know
to be true,
it is that great currents of
love and beauty
co-exist right beside great
stripes of pain,
and I still choose to celebrate this now:
the flowers in the trees,
the bones in the grass,
the blood on my knuckles,
the curving leaves,
the sweet berries,
the joy that bubbles up
right where I am.

During a stay-at-home order, if it’s not a complete lockdown, reminding yourself there is still an outside beyond your four walls has become imperative. Unfortunately, some areas, including my own in Wisconsin, have had to close our beautiful state parks in order to protect them. They were being flooded with folks desperate for nature and something to do. Although the majority were most likely there with good intentions and to appreciate the parks respectfully, some were definitely not practicing good social distancing guidelines with their fellow park-goers and worse still, were littering and vandalizing. Not cool. This has also been the case with many of our national parks. Sadly, some park workers were starting to test positive for COVID-19. Interestingly, in places now temporarily closed like Yosemite, the animals are having a party. Bears are out and about in high numbers without the usual throng of visitors. At Kruger National Park in South Africa, a whole pride of lions were happily lounging in the sun all along what would normally be frequently traveled road.

I see my friends online, myself and my significant other have become creative as to how, when and where we seek refuge off the beaten path into the woods, prairies, and meadows. The heart of the city can feel not unlike navigating a minefield in pandemic conditions. If you want to go out for a walk on a nice day, a drive to less-populated area is key. Do some research online ahead of time and find out what is and is not available to the public in your area currently. Even if state parks are closed, many smaller county parks remain open. Try to plan to your visit so it wouldn’t be at a peak time that everyone would have the same idea to be there. Wear gloves and masks and maintain the safe six-foot distance on all trails when coming into contact with others. Taking the high road has come to mean, “I will be the one to always veer off the trail if necessary,” to me. You can still be friendly and say, “hi.” Just do it from behind your bandanna, please.

“Let the beauty we love 
Be what we do
There are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the Earth.”

Pagans get ready to celebrate Earth Day. Oklahoma Pagans face persecution from neighbors. And the role of magic in anarchism is considered. It's Watery Wednesday, our weekly segment on news about the Pagan community! All this and more for the Pagan News Beagle!