I love Earth Day and the month of April for many reasons. To start with, they happen at the time of year when the world is waking up from its long, winter slumber—at least here in the Northern Hemisphere. I rejoice in the thrill of re-awakening, the hope for warmer weather, and the prospect of more enjoyable time outdoors with my horses, animals, garden, and nature. It’s an exhilarating time for me!
I also love Earth Day because it is a celebration of something precious that we all share: a common mother, Mother Earth. Just like our human mothers, we celebrate this mother. She is exquisitely beautiful, wise beyond belief, and gives us so much. I am grateful to have a special time to acknowledge how fortunate we are to live on such a magnificent planet.
Taking care of the Earth isn’t easy. Reducing environmental impacts and climate change can be stressful. Sometimes it feels overwhelming. Burdensome. Frightening. Definitely confusing. It can be all of those things, all at once.
But doing our best is all about baby steps—starting someplace and doing what we can. Refuse plastic straws. Compost and recycle. If each of us forges ahead, making small changes where we can, we can change the current trajectory and take better care of our Mother.
This issue includes an article listing things to do to get your horse property springing forward. The good news is that a spring reset isn’t just good for your horses and chore-efficiency, but it’s also good for Planet Earth. Greener pastures and more trees and plants help hold soil in place with their roots, preventing soil erosion. Photosynthesizing plants pull carbon from the atmosphere and sequester it in their roots, one of the most effective ways of reducing climate change. If you choose native plants for landscaping projects, you also provide important habitat and food sources for native animals and beneficial pollinating insects. Adding compost to pastures, lawns, and garden helps hold in soil moisture, which will sustain plants through droughty periods. We can reduce our chemical use for insect control if we provide nest boxes for insect-eating birds instead. Just imagine: if all horse people made a few of these small changes, we could become a force to be reckoned with!
We humans are very much like our wild animal counterparts in that we react to a perceived threat. If today looks like a nice day, then there’s nothing to worry about. But if we wait to do something about climate change until its effects are impossible to ignore, it may be too late. It is good to appreciate beautiful moments like those brought by the coming of spring, but it’s equally important that we do what we can now to help take good care of this wonderous Planet Earth and behave like the good stewards we are meant to be.
Enjoy April and Earth Day, and take care!
Alayne
