One of the things I\u2019ve long appreciated about my parents is their consistent encouragement to sit down at the table, with me, and talk about everything. Let me be clear\u2026 as a kid, I didn\u2019t always like it. I wasn\u2019t always fond of it. And often it was either (a) incredibly inconvenient, (b) significantly painful, or (c) just something I\u2019d rather not discuss.<\/p>\n
But with sincere prodding, knowing some of the topics were especially not easy, they each encouraged my siblings and me to engage, sharing what we were feeling and thinking. The Intramuralist thus learned the value in processing together. Some of that was good, bad, and ugly. Sometimes some of our thoughts and beliefs didn\u2019t make any sense. But the freedom to process what we were thinking proved to be an invaluable, growth opportunity \u2014 for all of us \u2014 even when my perspective was illogical or untrue. It would have been far easier for my parents to simply shut the conversation down or invite no more. Yet they were wiser than me; they knew we would grow from the processing.<\/p>\n
In recent weeks, I\u2019ve overheard multiple conversations \u2014 especially regarding the enormity of calamity\u2026<\/p>\n
Hurricane Harvey\u2026 the massive storm that meandered over Eastern Texas for no doubt way too long, causing catastrophic, unheard of flooding\u2026<\/p>\n
Hurricane Irma\u2026 Harvey\u2019s sui generis sister, which wrecked havoc on the Caribbean and much of the State of Florida, reportedly destroying at least 25% of homes in the Florida Keys\u2026<\/p>\n
Fires in the Pacific Northwest\u2026 multiple cataclysmic blazes in Montana, Oregon, and Washington, shaping up to be what the Associated Press calls \u201cone of the worst in U.S. history in land burned.\u201d<\/p>\n
Add to such reports from my sweet friend in the Gal\u00e1pagos Islands, where the unsuspecting La Cumbre volcano erupted on Fernandina Island after a decade of dormancy.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s no wonder those concerned about our Earth\u2019s climate have been increasingly vocal. With repeated refrains echoing from Houston to Key West, persons are seriously, genuinely concerned about the state of our planet. I deeply respect, appreciate, and share such concern.<\/p>\n
Please note I am no expert. No scientist either. Like many of you, my limited perspective comes from reading and research and talking to those who know more than me. I try to talk to far more than partisans or the likeminded. Such a practice helps me grow.<\/p>\n
I am also committed to being a wise steward of all that\u2019s in my possession. That means I believe in treating our Earth well. Because you and I both live here, I want us both to treat it well. We are in this together. Always. The challenge arises, no less, because treating something well inherently includes a variety of approach.<\/p>\n
With the recent perceived uptick in calamitous events, I\u2019ve noticed a promoted change in the allowance of varied approach. Allow me to quote a current, promoted school of thought:<\/p>\n
There is only one right way to think.<\/em><\/p>\n In last week\u2019s The Nation,<\/em> Mark Hertsgaard, the investigative editor at large, sincerely responded to some of the disasters mentioned above\u2026 \u201cThe horrors hurled at Houston and the Himalayan lowlands in late August were heartbreaking.\u201d<\/em> I so agree.<\/p>\n Hertsgaard went further. He concluded Hurricane Harvey, etal. were the result of man\u2019s lack of implementing more protective, climate change measures; he holds \u201cclimate change deniers\u201d and \u201cother powerful know-nothings\u201d responsible\u2026 \u201cHow long before we hold the ultimate authors of such climate catastrophes accountable for the miseries they inflict?\u2026 It is past time to call out\u2026 all climate deniers for this crime against humanity. No more treating climate denial like an honest difference of opinion\u2026 The first step toward justice is to call things by their true names. Murder is murder, whether the murderers admit it or not.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n The Washington Times then followed this week with a report that in the aftermath of Harvey and Irma, the calls to punish skeptics is rising\u00a0[even though the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says attributing hurricanes to warming is premature<\/a>].<\/em><\/p>\n In other words, any who deny climate change is committing a crime. In still other words, no other opinion is allowed. There is only one right way to think.<\/p>\n Friends, I don\u2019t know exactly what is true. I don\u2019t know with certainty the exact causes and proportion of those causes and the exact extent of any future effects. My desire, therefore, is to process wisely, together, so our \u201cone nation under God\u201d can figure it out and be wise stewards of our planet. But right now I am uncomfortable with the self-profiting and contradictions from various perspectives\u2026 I am uncomfortable with the insults and intimidation\u2026 and I am uncomfortable with any analysis that omits that \u201cunder God\u201d part\u2026 especially since as the Creator, he would seem to have way more insight than we.<\/p>\n What I also believe, with all passion and respect, is that we have opportunity to learn from the totality of our processing \u2014 listening and learning from one another\u2026 if we sit down at the table, together, with the freedom to share what may or may not be true. Wisdom is found in the processing \u2014 not in shutting the conversation down.<\/p>\n I\u2019m thankful for my parents. They indeed taught me well.<\/p>\n Respectfully\u2026 <\/p>\n {Photo by Redd Angelo<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a>}<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" One of the things I\u2019ve long appreciated about my parents is their consistent encouragement to sit down at the table, with me, and talk about everything. Let me be clear\u2026 as a kid, I didn\u2019t always like it. I wasn\u2019t always fond of it. And often it was either (a) incredibly inconvenient, (b) significantly painful, … <\/p>\n
\nAR<\/p>\n