Let’s remember to make every single day Earth day.
We live in relationship with the earth and her rhythms. What are some things we can do with our children to nurture our relationship to Mother Earth and her rhythms as well as to care for her?
1. Approach life with awe and wonder. Stop to look at the tiny ant. Watch the worms wiggle when digging in the garden; thank them for the help they give. Stretch out under a tree and look at the sky through its branches. Go for a regular walk through the same area and note the changes around you with the root, bulb, and seed children. Dance in the rain. Walk barefoot in puddles and the grass. Sit outside at night with no lights and watch the stars come out. Awaken once each year before sunrise and watch the sun come up. Watch the sun set each day and notes its path through the sky over the year.
2. Eat S.O.L.E. food: Sustainable, Organic, Local and/or Ethical. Farmers markets. C.S.A.’s and our backyards are places where we can find a direct connection to the food we eat, the people who grow it, the animals who give to us and be mindful of and grateful for where our money goes and as well as from whence our food comes.
3. Tell stories about Mother Earth and her children. Sibylle von Olfers, The Story of the Root Children and all of Elsa Beskow’s books make inspiring starting points. Nancy Mellon and Susan Perrow offer good books on how to tell stories to your children.
4. Grow your food, even if it’s in containers. Try lettuce and strawberries and nasturtiums. Nasturtium flowers and leaves are edible. Grow some of the food you buy. This year I am striving to grow the beans we’ll use through the winter until next summer. Grow plants for tea like Sweet Melissa (lemon balm), pineapple mint, fennel and cat mint. Grow herbs that you love for cooking or healing. Encourage children to sniff and taste in the garden.
5. Create a comfortable and lovely space and eat outdoors.
6. Sing about her:
The Earth is our mother, we must take care of her
The Earth is our mother, we must take care of her.
Hey yana, ho yana, hey yan yan,
Hey yana, ho yana, hey yan yan.
Her sacred ground we walk upon, with every step we take
Her sacred ground we walk upon, with every step we take.
Hey yana, ho yana, hey yan yan,
Hey yana, ho yana, hey yan yan.
The Sky is our father, we must take care of him
The Sky is our father, we must take care of him
Hey yana, ho yana, hey yan yan,
Hey yana, ho yana, hey yan yan.
The Rivers are our sisters, we must take care of them
The Rivers are our sisters, we must take care of them.
Hey yana, ho yana, hey yan yan,
Hey yana, ho yana, hey yan yan.
The Trees are our brothers, we must take care of them
The Trees are our brothers, we must take care of them.
Hey yana, ho yana, hey yan yan,
Hey yana, ho yana, hey yan yan.
7. Thank her after meals. After eating just before we snuff the beeswax (thank you bees) candle out, we say, “Thank you, thank you, Mother Earth, thank you, thank you, for our food.” Then snuff out the candle.
8. Make finger puppets and use gesture verses that celebrate Mother Earth’s creatures.
9. Create cozy places in the yard where children can play. Plant bushes and trees that create spaces where children can hide, play, have tea and feel protected. Use edible landscaping.
10. Compost. Spin, bin, worm and sheet, so many styles of composting can be done, even in small and urban spaces.. Find one that best suits your needs. Some municipalities offer compost drop off too. In the opening scene of the 1967 film, The Graduate the word “plastics” is uttered as the wave of the future. Compost is that word for today, compost can heal the earth and help create a sustainable environment for all her inhabitants.
11. Support elemental play for children. Build fires, fly kites, splash in puddles, dig in the mud. Allow for time and messiness for children to explore the earth and wonder at her mysteries.
12. Make the earth a better place. Be conscious of where things come from and where they go. Re-purpose, re-build, pass on, clothing, toys, books, wood.
Lisa Boisvert Mackenzie is the Editor and Publisher of The Wonder of Childhood. This article was originally published in 2010 on her blog, Celebrate the Rhythm of Life .
If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!
Great post! I didn’t think we were doing much for Earth Day. but when you look at it like this as a day to day thing we do celebrate earth day every day. Thanks!
Becca
Thank you for reminding me that the daily gestures of our lives are all a part of the earth’s sustaining, and our own.
The beauty and joy of a Waldorf ECE teacher is that we take pride in how children imitate our gestures towards every living thing, all year round:)
So even without words we celebrate our Earth Mother. I love my work with all my being <3