Air – Take a deep breath

AIR – #2 in a series on Lessons from Things that make up Nature …

Take a gander at the picture with two sides
– Clear Air in an Open Field
– Fog/Smog in a Crowd
From which would like to take a deep breath?

A couple weeks ago, this area of the country was impacted by the wildfires of Canada.

The wind had delivered a mass amount of smoke into our part of the country. It was an ordeal. Not only was the Summer heat intense, it now smelled of ash and smoke.

I am used to the smog and haziness. I lived in a few big cities. Even where I am now, my little town is know for mist and fog. Maybe not London famous, but enough that each time it appears, it make a guy a bit squeamish. ( I have seen The Mist and The Fog movies too often.)

But this was different … the smell, the acidity, the thickness.

Not as bad as NYC or Chicago, but we got it.

People wearing masks. Others remaining indoors. Sports cancelled. Weather warnings, Coughing everywhere, and hospital visits from people endangered by breathing illnesses. I want to give a special thank you for filtered air – air conditioning technology. A special place in heaven for those people.

There was even air quality warnings at higher altitudes … going hiking to get away from the smoke wasn’t an option around here.

So, what lessons do I take away from all this …

• Nature is fragile … now I’m not a Climate Change paranoid fanatic or anything … but we can do a better job of keeping our environment clean. Nature is impacted from the Fall of Man, and we often feel the impact of that. In the hiker verbiage – leave it like you found it … nothing but the footprints.
• Don’t lose appreciation for the normal … be grateful for clear days, enjoy the weather when you can, and don’t stay inside forever. On these great days … get out and take a big breath of air.
• Support your local firemen … we have a volunteer fire department and they are so under-appreciated … having to deal with all of this all the time.
• And maybe support the national organizations that help prevent forest fires. I once saw the original Smokey the Bear in the Washington Zoo (yes, I go back that far) … Smokey is the GOAT, well the bear goat? Goat bear? You get it.

Bad weather, smokey weather, etc. … can be reminder to slow down and recognize the importance of environmental stewardship. God put us here and put us over nature as stewards. Let’s do our part.