The sky turned pink at sunset; January is always the time of lovely sunsets here on the northern coast.
Earlier today, I stood in the garden, looking at this beauty. Since the more we know scientifically, the more we realize that all life is related, I'm starting to sympathize ever more with those who try to live life lightly.
But the truth is that modern humans in developed societies acquire, discard, and waste so many resources that future historians may well classify this era "the time of excess."
Even small steps toward sustainable, low-waste lifestyles have an inherent appeal to almost all of us. Those of us who are parents often are confronted by our young children about habits that could be changed in ways that would eliminate or at least recycle more waste than we have been doing up until now.
Here's one reason to listen to your children when they bring up "environmental" issues. It's their future that is at stake here, not yours. They are going to have to deal with the repercussions of "the time of excess" one way or another, so you might think of their voices as voices from the future.
Twelve-year-olds, for instance, see the world with a startling clarity. Besides the fact that they see all the way through you, their parent, as if you were transparent, they have acquired the intellectual tools to independently assess things like which foods to buy, how best to minimize waste, and what kind of value system to use going forward in a world of excess.
It's funny. A friend of mine talks about the time he met my oldest daughter when she was around this age and he always mentions something she told him -- that children should be able to vote.
Without taking a position on that issue, I'll say this. We could do worse than to listen to our twelve-year-olds. Much worse.
And we often have.
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