hydrangea blossoming

hydrangea blossoming
Hydrangea on the Edge of Blooming

Sunday, March 28, 2010

Earth Hour in Point Roberts

Earth Hour:  That's where/when you acknowledge we've been using the planet poorly, maybe even abusing the planet, and as a penance, or something, you turn off your lights for an hour on March 27, from 8:30 until 9:30, wherever you are on the planet. 

People in Point Roberts often talk a lot about conservation and preservation and it is certainly possible that they do all they can to leave a small footprint.  And perhaps they made this symbolic gesture last night.  Or maybe they are not into symbolic gestures.  I don't really know.

However, I think that symbolic gestures are important cultural acknowledgements that we are all in this together.  And because of that, I set an alarm so I'd notice that it was 8:30 p.m., and when the alarm went off, I turned all the lights out in our house.  And I found a candle and lit it so that I didn't run into anything, because when it's dark here, it's really dark.

And then, around 9 pm, I went outdoors and out into the street to note that every single occupied house on my street (that would be about 14-16 houses) was fully lighted, as they are every night, with extra bright porch lights and all.  Maybe everywhere else on the Point, it was dark.  Or maybe not. I am, however, pretty sure that we are in this thing all together.  What are the stages of loss?  Denial?  Bargaining? and some others.  I guess we're mostly at denial.