Inspiration from the Young

I read this article in this month's Biodiesel Magazine (http://www.biodieselmagazine.com/articles/9086/utahs-young-biodiesel-phenom).  In case you don't want to read the whole thing, it's about this intelligent, hardworking Sophomore young lady who has won tons of science awards, etc. from doing a variety of experiments on extracting biodiesel from things like used coffee grounds. 

After reading it, it did two things for me:

1) Made all my high school accomplishments (heck, even college ones) feel like diddly-squat compared to this girl!


and

2) Inspired me that our youth have not given up hope and in fact are smarter than we give them credit for.

They are out there trying to improve our world, to ensure sustainability of the planet and of humanity, to really make a difference.

So if growing up means giving up hope on bettering things, on making a difference, then I definitely do not want to grow up. 

After 14 years of working in the for-profit corporate world, and focusing so much on climbing the corporate ladder to prove to myself (and selfishly to others) that I can be a serious, successful corporate executive, I will admit the view from up there was not as nice as I had envisioned.
 

"Growing up" was not so attractive after all. Sure there were plenty of perks, but it lacked something crucial to me.  Something I had when I was in high school and college.  Something I always thought I'd have forever in my studies, career and continuous learning. 

Passion.  It lacked passion.

My passion, my hobby of "greening" our family, our home, our local community, was always just that...a passion, a hobby, something I did for fun. 

Until one day I decided to stop being such a boring grown up and try to get some of that passion back in my career.  I wanted a career that didn't just pay the bills but made me excited to wake up in the morning and thankful when I went to bed at night.  It's not as easy as it sounds to find a job that can do all of those things.

Maybe it was September 11 and seeing the smoke from the Pentagon from my office window or seeing the emergence of army personnel with weapons drawn on the streets and the Metro outside our office. 

Maybe it was sitting in a high level meeting complete with leather chairs and marble tables that screamed luxury in a beautiful downtown office and thinking "I'm helping rich people get richer while poor people get poorer and that just doesn't feel right." 

Maybe it was that my kids started asking me what I did for "work", where I went all day, why I came home so late, or why I had to travel to that city or this one, all the while looking at me with those eyes that said "I miss you" and the hugs that felt like "Don't ever let me go." 

Maybe it was a combination of all these things that made me realize I had to do something about it.  Things don't happen by themselves.  I'm all for going with the flow, but I realized I had been going with the flow for far too long.

It was time to push my limits, just as this young girl, only a Sophomore in high school, has already done. While I wish I had figured this out at her age, you are never too old to push your limits and follow your dreams.

Keep Prince William Beautiful

Check out page 24 of April's Prince William Living magazine for my latest article.  Since it's Earth Day this month and a topic right up my alley, see what I say about the local nonprofit organization "Keep Prince William Beautiful" and some green tips.

Made In China

Not to sound like an alarmist, but wow, this is a bit alarming especially when you see the video of Beijing over the last 3 weeks.

And to think that we contribute to this every time we buy something that says "Made in China".  Take a look around your house, your closet, your car, your kitchen, even your refrigerator and freezer.  How many things did you find that say "Made in China"?  Did you even realize that jar of chopped garlic came from China?

I know it's hard.  Especially when it's shiny or new or oh, such a great price!  Been there, done that.  Still struggling with that every time I walk into a store (as you can tell from my Cupcake post).  Every. Time.

I'm not against buying anything from China (sort of).  I understand we live in a global business environment and want to support other countries (and vice versa) through trade.  I love the bamboo bowl I bought several years ago through Ten Thousand Villages - handmade by artisans in Vietnam through one of their special arts programs.  I love the scarf I bargained back and forth for in a Portugal flea market.  But there are some countries with very strong, rigorous environmental and human rights laws or with great programs that work directly with struggling artists or crafters.  And there are some countries that, simply put, suck at all that.  We just need to be more aware of which countries those are and put pressure with our purchasing dollars to encourage them to change their ways.

It gets to a point that you have to stop blaming others for the problems we see in the news (like this air pollution article) and take some of the blame ourselves for our every day decisions.

It gets to a point that we can no longer say "I don't care. I don't live in China so this is not relevant to me."

It gets to a point that you look in the mirror and ask what is happening to us as human beings.
Or worse, you look at your child and wonder what it's going to be like for their generation and feel fear for them.

It gets to a point where you stay up late to write a blog post about all this to share with people even though you've worked hard at your full time job all day, cooked dinner, cleaned up and washed dishes, did a load of laundry, read the kids some stories and brushed their teeth and now all you want to do is just crawl into bed and go to sleep.  Even if just one person reads it and thinks twice about their next purchase or the next time they throw something in the trash, it was worth it.

We are all in this together, but individual actions matter.

Reality Check

In case you were wondering if I, in fact, had the nerve to walk up to a group of women with chainsaws on Saturday and ask them about their CO2 emissions and if they would consider using sustainable biofuels to power their chainsaws next time...

With 18 month old in arms, I walked towards them, in awe of the art they were creating with simply tree trunks, chainsaws, and their imagination.  I was struck by the fresh scent of fresh wood chips in the air.  So not "green" since there were these piles of dead trees everywhere, but I couldn't help but be drawn to the wonderful scent that was better than any car air freshener I've ever seen (Note: In my 35+ years on this earth, I have NEVER had an air freshener in my car--but that's another post at another time.)

But I never made it to the ladies with the chainsaws.

I had a baby in my arms.

Babies don't like loud noises.

Baby + loud chainsaws = Lots of crying

Mission Aborted

Yet another reality check that in my wonderful vision of making a small difference one person at a time, I forgot about the one person in my arms and their little ears.  Does it mean I have given up?  No.  I wrote a letter: 

"Dear Chainsaw Chix,

I enjoyed viewing your sculptures and artwork at the Fall Festival in Manassas this weekend, Saturday, October 6^th.  It is amazing what you can do with a simple tree trunk, some chainsaws and a world of imagination.

I was wondering if you have considered the environmental impact of the gas powered chainsaws you were using.  May I encourage you to look into alternative powered chainsaws such as electric or sustainable biofuels powered chainsaws?  Since you are probably not near an electrical source at these festivals, electric may not be an option at all.  But I wonder if sustainable biodiesel or even a sustainably sourced ethanol mixture could be used in the chainsaws?  I haven’t done any research on this for chainsaws, but if cars, trucks, and even airplanes can now run on biodiesel or ethanol or other biofuels, then I wonder if chainsaws can to?  How wonderful would it be for your marketing and PR efforts if you showed the world that not only are you mega-cool and incredibly talented, but that you are eco-conscious too!  What a great example you could set for everyone!

Again, I enjoyed the art this weekend.  But I would have enjoyed it even more if those chainsaws were powered by a renewable sustainable fuel.

Sincerely,
 
Helena, a fan of Chainsaw Chix"