OrilliaMatters received the following letter from Fred Larsen of Sustainable Orillia.
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I’m writing this letter to make a plea today for all of us to think today, not only of our human mothers, but also of Mother Earth, the mother of the human race and of all living things — plant, animal, fish and fowl — on this planet.
Mother’s Day each year is a special day to consider the debt all of us owe to our mothers for bringing us into this world, first of all, and then for providing the nurturing, care, and love that all of us require to grow and mature into healthy, responsible adults.
As living beings on this planet, we similarly owe a debt to Mother Earth for what we receive from her each day and each hour throughout our lives. And here in the Orillia area, we are particularly lucky.
Let’s start with breathable air, drinkable water and healthy food grown on the nearby agricultural lands. Then consider the beauty of our landscape, our lakes and rivers, and the nearby forested lands.
Consider, as well, the dwellings we live in, mostly sheltering us from the elements both summer and winter; dwellings built from the resources that our Earth provides for us.
Consider the whole community we live in, the amenities, the services, the security that most of us enjoy on a daily basis.
We in the Orillia area are very lucky.
For us, Mother Earth remains nurturing in most ways. People living in other parts of the world aren’t so lucky. They may experience food shortages, disease and drought, and, in our modern world, the ravages of polluted air, water and land.
The truth is that we human beings haven’t done a very good job of caring for our Mother, the Earth itself.
We can do better — even here in Orillia.
A new organization, called Sustainable Orillia, is issuing a call for better care of our Earth, starting right here in our community.
It will require all of us who share this place on this planet to work together, but those of us in this new organization are confident that, together, we CAN do better and, if we try hard enough, we can eventually lead fully sustainable lives.
What a gift that would be to Mother Earth! And what better time to promise that gift than on Mother’s Day, 2019.
Fred Larsen
Sustainable Orillia
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