A Post With No Pictures

I can never write what I want to say or even what is in my head. I suppose that's why I usually just post picures. I have all these great thoughts, such great topics to write about, and in my head I can compose something that's pretty good, not really very clever or witty or probably even very entertaining, but thoughtful and meaningful. When I sit down to write it (because when I have these great thoughts in my head I'm usually no where near a writing utensil or keyboard) it completely escapes me. My head is empty, totally unable to recall what I wanted to say. The idea is there, but the way I wanted to say it is not. For example, I've been wanting to write about global warming for awhile now. Anyone who knows me is scratching their head right now. What do I care about global warming?! I'll tell you, although it is not going to be as good as I imagined it in my head to be.

A couple of years ago my little brother, Patrick, saw the movie "An Inconvenient Truth" and was telling us that everyone should see that movie. I laughed, I don't need crazy Al Gore, inventor of the internet, telling me that I need to go hug a tree. That was my gut reaction anyway that came from years of thinking that tree huggers/environmentalists where a little nutty. Honestly, how does hugging a tree save the earth? Anyway, that's what I was thinking then and I was also thinking about how in the Last Days the earth is supposed to burn and therefore that became my argument, as weak as it was. After teasing Patrick about his views on global warming I spent some time thinking about it and my own views, especially the view that it is the Last Days. I think that in the grand scheme of things it's supposed to happen. It was foretold in a way. I decided that I believed global warming is real. Having reached that conclusion I began to think about my responsibility in it all. I believed that global warming was happening, I believed that it was part of the events of the Last Days, that it couldn't be stopped. So does that mean that I can go about my merry way adding to the problem without a second thought because there is nothing to be done about it? I've decided that I can't. Heavenly Father gave us this earth to take care of. He gave us dominion over all the creatures and the plants. We should take care of it. We should do what we can to conserve and preserve. It's not going to stop the inevitable, it might not even slow it down, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't take care of it, right? I feel like so many of us have let convenience take over how we live in so many areas. It's so much easier to use a paper towel and throw it in the garbage than to use a rag that can go in the wash. It's so much easier to just leave the lights on than turning them on and off everytime you come and go. It's so much easier to take the car than to walk or take a bus. It's so much easier, and who doesn't want easier? Life is hard enough already. I know I'm up here on a soapbox, and a very shaky one at that. I don't recycle (yet), I still use paper towels (most of the time), and the car is so much easier and so much more convenient.   And truthfully, I don't know how effective using rags instead of paper towels is.  I read an article recently about a guy who switched to cloth diapers instead of disposable to see how much better it truly was for the environment.  It came up a draw between the two, because while the disposable diapers filled up the land fills, the cloth diapers used up a ton of water and energy.  So, I don't know.  But I know I could be better and smarter about the way my family lives.  Perhaps yours can too?  God wants to see if we can govern ourselves and the things he has entrusted to us.  He wants to see if we are fit for the job He has waiting for us.  I think that seeing how well we each do in doing our part to take care of the earth is part of that.  So, lets go hug some trees.