Earth Day! Let’s celebrate!

Friday is Earth Day. Most of us spend every waking and sleeping hour on this planet.

We call it home, but sometimes we take it for granted.

What could you do to give back to our big blue marble?

- Plant a tree. (or a bush or a seed)

- Walk instead of driving. (or skip, run, dance)

- Ride a bicycle. (or a cow, horse or unicycle)

- Share a commute with a neighbor or co-worker, or take public transportation. (And share good conversation on the way!)

- Volunteer to help clean up your local park or neighborhood. (Start with your own yard.)

- Use reuseable shopping bags, buy less and consider food packaging. Do you really need a separate plastic produce bag for lemons, limes, squash and onions. Go sans plastic bags, since you’re going to wash them anyway. (And use the food you buy. Don’t waste it and let it rot for a couple of weeks in the fridge.)

- Take shorter showers. (Turn water on, turn off, soap up, turn water on and do a quick rinse. Done!)

- Use less pesticides, fertilizers and chemicals around your home. Or stop using  unfriendly products altogether. (You might not have the prettiest lawn in the neighborhood, but you’ll feel safe having your kids play there.)

- Spend the evening watching a sunset — not the TV. (The color reception is so much better.)

- Play outside. (Bouncing balls, Hula-hoops and horseshoes are more Earth-friendly than living room-friendly.)

- Take your children on a nature hike, sharing appreciation of our environment. (Don’t touch the poison ivy!)

Share your Earth-celebrating ideas with The Oklahoman and our readers. You might inspire someone else to follow your example.

–Linda Lynn

LLynn@opubco.com

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