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“Memorial Day this year is especially important as we are reminded almost daily of the great sacrifices that the men and women of the Armed Services make to defend our way of life.” Robin Hayes
Motivation 2020: Mental Health Awareness Month & Memorial Day
Motivation 2020: Mental Health Awareness Month & Memorial Day
I have long believed that sacrifice is the pinnacle of patriotism. Bob Riley
Memorial Day isn’t just about honoring veterans, it’s honoring those who lost their lives. Veterans had the fortune of coming home. For us, that’s a reminder of when we come home we still have a responsibility to serve. It’s a continuation of service that honors our country and those who fell defending it. Pete Hegseth
A man’s country is not a certain area of land, of mountains, rivers, and woods, but it is a principle, and patriotism is loyalty to that principle. George William Curtis
On Memorial Day, I don’t want to only remember the combatants. There were also those who came out of the trenches as writers and poets, who started preaching peace, men, and women who have made this world a kinder place to live. Eric Burdon
Memorial Day & Mental Health Awareness Month: As we gather to celebrate Memorial Day on Monday, let us not forget that May is also Mental Health Awareness Month. This is very important to remember because even though Memorial Day honors members of our armed forces who died, many of our surviving Veterans came home and continue to come home with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and other mental health issues. Some remain paralyzed and/or damaged by the memories and impact of being in a war zone. Many who died, also left behind family and friends who struggle with mental health issues so the impact is universal. The global impact of the coronavirus pandemic has taken a toll on our collective mental health. Many are struggling. Depression, Insomnia, drug addiction, and suicides are up. How do we cope? How can we help? Throughout this post, we will offer tips and resources for those in need. Each year, the Mental Health America (MHA) organization chooses a theme to help us focus on issues that affect us all in the mental health arena. This year, they appropriately return to last year’s theme #4Mind4Body – “The #Tools2Thrive theme was chosen in “a time of unprecedented anxiety about a world pandemic, Mental Health America (MHA) today announced the start of its 2020 May is Mental Health Month campaign, with an emphasis on delivering “Tools 2 Thrive” to address the mental health needs of everyone” Wikipedia
Memorial Day: What do we know about it? On Memorial Day – we honor the brave men and women who served this great country and paid the ultimate price by giving their lives so we can live free. We honor and remember those who returned as survivors, witnesses, patriots, scarred. We honor all our servicemen/women around the world. Originally called Decoration Day, this special holiday began in response to the great loss of life during the American Civil War which, at its conclusion in 1865, had claimed the lives of over 620,000 men. In the early days, women would place flowers on the graves of fallen soldiers. By 1868, Major General John A. Logan designated it as an official day of remembrance. In 1971, it became a federal holiday. In case you don’t know this, Memorial Day honors American servicemen/women who lost their lives at war while Veterans Day honors all who served; alive and otherwise.
On Memorial Day, we pause to honor and remember all the brave souls who paid the ultimate sacrifice – they gave up their lives so the rest of us can enjoy all the freedoms and advantages that come with living under a system that upholds the democratic process. Each casualty of war or MIA leaves behind loved ones, family members, and memories of what could have been… Their loved ones hold on to the hope that their death was pain-free, not in vain, or that the MIA status will one day change. It rarely does. Each Memorial Day becomes a harbinger of reminders of loved ones lost to wars. Of interest, the Tomb of the Unknown soldier now remains empty as recent DNA testing was able to resolve the mystery of bones buried there. They belonged to an air force pilot by the name of Lt Michael Joseph Blassie. He has since been reburied in his hometown.
READ: Motivation Mondays: Remember & Honor #MemorialDay
Insomnia in a pandemic
Motivation Mondays: Observing Memorial Day
Motivation Mondays: Honoring Memorial Day
In Flanders Fields By John McCrae – 1872-1918
In Flanders Fields, the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.via poets.org
Decoration Day By Henry Wordsworth Longfellow
Sleep, comrades, sleep and rest
On this Field of the Grounded Arms,
Where foes no more molest,
Nor sentry’s shot alarms!
Ye have slept on the ground before,
And started to your feet
At the cannon’s sudden roar,
Or the drum’s redoubling beat.
But in this camp of Death
No sound your slumber breaks;
Here is no fevered breath,
No wound that bleeds and aches.
All is repose and peace,
Untrampled lies the sod;
The shouts of battle cease,
It is the Truce of God!
Rest, comrades, rest, and sleep!
The thoughts of men shall be
As sentinels to keep
Your rest from danger free.
Your silent tents of green
We deck with fragrant flowers;
Yours has the suffering been,
The memory shall be ours. via hwlongfellow.org
“The problem with the stigma around mental health is really about the stories that we tell ourselves as a society. What is normal? That’s just a story that we tell ourselves.” Matthew Quick
Motivation 2020: Mental Health Awareness Month & Memorial Day
Motivation 2020: Mental Health Awareness Month & Memorial Day
What mental health needs is more sunlight, more candor, and more unashamed conversation. Glenn Close
Mental health is often missing from public health debates even though it’s critical to well-being. Diane Abbott
Self-esteem is as important to our well-being as legs are to a table. It is essential for physical and mental health and happiness. Louise Hart
The probability that we may fail in the struggle ought not to deter us from the support of a cause we believe to be just! Abraham Lincoln
Some of the most comforting words in the universe are ‘me too.’ That moment when you find out that your struggle is also someone else’s struggle, that you’re not alone, and that others have been down the same road. Unknown
Mental Health Awareness: What do we know? Did you know that over 300 million people suffer from depression globally? And that it is the second leading cause of death among 15-29-year olds? If you look around you or think about it carefully, you or someone you know has had a bout of depression over the years. Some are even diagnosed as clinically depressed and the treatment is long term. Given the current Covid19 pandemic, we can only imagine how much higher that number is going to be by the end of this year. The truth is that we are all the faces of mental illness which includes depression. It looks like YOU, ME, and EVERYONE out there and there is help. Of course, the sad part is that, quite often, we hide behind the stigma that is attached to this and every other form of mental illness when we should not. You did nothing wrong and it is NOT your fault. Like every other illness of the mind and body, we need support, information, and intervention.
How do we Cope with Mental Health Issues During this Pandemic? One sad side effect of the current Covid19 pandemic is the level of stress, depression, and sleeplessness it has created in a lot of people. There is an underlying current of anxiety that is showing up as disrupted sleep patterns. I’ve had my share of it and have to constantly remind myself that using calming tools, prayer, yoga, and meditation, long walks, and a couple of short naps during the day help me handle it. On Sunday, my pastor, Pastor Buddy of Northway Church, reminded us that being and staying present and enjoying the life we have now is important. Restful sleep is part of that equation. Even as we sort out our unemployment insurance issues, health matters, personal goals, and other demands, we must make room for rest/sleep/relaxation. It is imperative if we want to maintain optimum health and not fall ill or become depressed.
Yes, these are challenging times but we can find ways to help us keep stepping one foot in front of the other. I take a zoom restorative yoga class 3-4 days, walk 4-6 miles every day, dance, and take short naps throughout the day. I attend quite a few prayer groups/meditation events online and listen to uplifting music. Do I need more sleep? Probably and I am taking steps to help myself rest more. Pastor Buddy suggested 10 helpful tips to Get Good Sleep:- 1. Stick to a strict sleep schedule. 2. Practice a relaxing bedtime ritual. 3. Avoid naps 
4. Adjust temperature. 5. Avoid alcohol and heavy meals. 6. Dim all lights 7. Only sleep in your bed not the living room sofa. 8. Make gradual adjustments. 9. Sleep on a good mattress. 10. Avoid all caffeine. Where are you struggling with on this list? I need fewer naps and more sleep.
Who do we reach for support? If according to the National Institute of Mental Health, nearly one in five U.S. adults lives with a mental illness, we can offer pockets of hope by encouraging people to share information on resources available to our surviving servicemen/women and their loved ones. Support the efforts of those who are thriving and those who are struggling. Hope keeps survivors fighting to stay alive and comes in many forms; through grace, the kindness of people and opportunities to heal. Hope comes in the form of Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors, TAPS, which was created in 1994 by Bonnie Carroll after the tragic death of her husband, Brig. Gen Tom Carroll, in a plane crash. TAPS offers a variety of resources to the loved ones/family of military staff. They provide comprehensive care including services and programs such as peer-based emotional support, casework assistance, crisis intervention, and grief and trauma resources. They give help, hope, and healing to families who have lost a loved one/family member. Their toll-free hotline is 1-800-509-TAPS (8277).
How can we be of help? For those battling depression, post-traumatic stress disorders, and/or feeling suicidal, both Hopeline and AFSP – American Foundation for Suicide Prevention provide great resources and immediate help to veterans and their families. Hopeline was started in 1998 by Reese Butler after the death of his wife, Kristin, by suicide. His goal has remained “to offer HOPE and the option to LIVE to those in the deepest emotional pain.” AFSP has been involved in several suicide prevention initiatives and provides groundbreaking research, educational campaigns, innovative demonstration projects, and important policy work. It advocates for policies and legislation at all levels of government bringing awareness and change to the subject of suicide prevention. The toll-free number for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 1-800-273-TALK (8255) OR Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 741-741.
READ: Motivation Mondays: World Health Day – Depression #LetsTalk
WHO: Handout on Depression
What I Know for Sure About Mental Illness By Oprah Winfrey
Motivation Mondays: Rejuvenation
Resilience practice By Alex Elle
look yourself in the eye
when you feel the most hurt, the most ashamed
and unworthy.
when you are barely
able to stand up
straight because the
pain runs deeper
than you are willing
to go.
and love yourself
entirely anyway.
Little Stones at My Window By Mario Benedetti
for roberto and adelaida
Once in a while
joy throws little stones at my window
it wants to let me know that it’s waiting for me
but today I’m calm
I’d almost say even-tempered
I’m going to keep anxiety locked up
and then lie flat on my back
which is an elegant and comfortable position
for receiving and believing news
who knows where I’ll be next
or when my story will be taken into account
who knows what advice I still might come up with
and what easy way out I’ll take not to follow it
don’t worry, I won’t gamble with an eviction
I won’t tattoo remembering with forgetting
there are many things left to say and suppress
and many grapes left to fill our mouths
don’t worry, I’m convinced
joy doesn’t need to throw any more little stones
I’m coming
I’m coming. via poets.org
The details for Motivation Mondays are below. Join in! The themes for APR – MAY 2020 are:
04/01 – 01 April Fool’s Day, Autism Awareness Month
04/05 – 05 Palm Sunday, 06 Int’l. Day of Sport for Devel. & Peace, 09 Holy Thursday/ Start of Passover, 10 Good Friday
04/12 – 12 Easter Sunday, 15 Jackie Robinson Day, 16 Passover (End), Nat’l. High Five Day, 17 Nat’l. Haiku Poetry Day
04/19 – 19 Bicycle Day, 21 Holocaust Remembrance of Slavery, 22 Earth Day, 24 Start of Ramadan/Arbor Day, 25 DNA Day/ World Malaria Day
04/26 – 26 World Intellectual Property Day, 28 World Day for Safety and Health at Work, 29 Duke Ellington Day/Int’l. Dance Day
MAY
05/01 – 01 May Day, May is Mental Health Awareness Month
05/03 – 03 World Laughter Day/ Press Freedom Day, 05 Cinco De Mayo/ National Teacher Day/World Asthma Day, 06 National Nurses Day, 07 National Day of Prayer
05/10 – 10 Mother’s Day (US), 15 International Day of Families, 16 Armed Forces Day/International Day of Light
05/17 – 17 World Telecommunication and Information Day, 20 World Bee Day, 21 World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development, 23 Eid al Fitr Starts/Ramadan Ends/International Day to End Obstetric Fistula/World Turtle Day
05/24 – 24 National Brother Day, 25 Memorial Day, 28 Shavuot Starts, 29 International Day of UN Peacekeepers, 30 World MS Day/Shavuot ends, 31 World NO Tobacco Day
Are You Looking for Ways to Stay Creative in 2019?
- Join Our Blog Support & Engagement Group
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“Grown don’t mean nothing to a mother. A child is a child. They get bigger, older, but grown. In my heart, it don’t mean a thing.” Toni Morrison
Motivation 2020: For Mother’s Day #mothersday
10 Fun Facts About Mother’s Day Around the World
We are born of love; Love is our mother. Rumi
Most mothers are instinctive philosophers. Harriet Beecher Stowe
Life doesn’t come with a manual, it comes with a mother. Unknown
It may be possible to gild pure gold, but who can make his mother more beautiful? Mahatma Gandhi
He didn’t realize that love as powerful as your mother’s for you leaves its own mark. J.K. Rowling
When you look into your mother’s eyes, you know that is the purest love you can find on this earth. Mitch Albom
Youth fades; love droops; the leaves of friendship fall; A mother’s secret hope outlives them all. Oliver Wendell Holmes
I believe the choice to become a mother is the choice to become one of the greatest spiritual teachers there is. Oprah
If I have done anything in life worth attention, I feel sure that I inherited the disposition of my mother. Booker T. Washington
Happy Mother’s Day Week: While Mother’s Day is celebrated on a wide range of days and months globally, in the USA, it is celebrated on the second Sunday of May. Some might argue that, like Valentine’s Day, the love of mothers and motherhood should be an everyday affair. I concur, however, designating a special day to honor important events in life is ubiquitous and gives us all a chance to wax poetic about loved ones and catch up on gift-giving. This year, Mother’s Day will hold a unique memory in our hearts because it will be the first time in decades that we get to honor Mom while sheltered-in-place. The Covid19 pandemic has curtailed any attempts to go out or gather in large groups for this special occasion. Yet, it can be a time of great joy because our celebrations will come with added meaning and a recognition of the precariousness of life. Being cooped up in close quarters with loved ones, limited resources, and even limited reasons to leave for one expedition or the other means that we get to spend this special day truly engaged in our version of loving Mom. We will honor and celebrate her with what my Pastor Buddy at Northway Church calls “Defiant Joy. ”
Honoring Mom with Defiant Joy: As many of you know, my Mom passed away last August. She had suffered a massive stroke that kept her partially paralyzed for over 30 years yet, being the fighter she always was, she managed to find dignity in her daily struggles to speak, move, and welcome her many grandchildren. It is with the same defiant joy that I will celebrate and honor her life this Mother’s Day. How do we maintain Defiant Joy with loved ones in these challenging times?
1. Master Your Mornings – set the tone with a positive routine. Make a commitment to enjoy the day – Start TODAY
2. Turn off the JOY Robbers – Consume less news and related media
3 Take a dose of laughter every day with loved ones – Read Proverbs 17:22
4. Laugh at yourself; humor requires humility.
5. Don’t make anyone else responsible for your joy.
6. Enjoy the SIMPLE things.
7. Look younger with Joy – Yes, happy, joyful people age better.
8. Relationships that laugh together, stay together.
9. Do something for someone else. Be a blessing to someone today.
10. Strengthen your gratitude. Instead of finding fault, find and praise the good in your Mom and others; we are all flawed. Be grateful.
READ:- Motivation Mondays: For Our Mothers #mothersday
Motivation Mondays: Why Mother’s Day Matters
Motivation Mondays: Celebrate Mother’s Day! #mothersday
Motivation Mondays: Mother’s Day
Mother, A Cradle to Hold Me By Maya Angelou
It is true
I was created in you.
It is also true
That you were created for me.
I owned your voice.
It was shaped and tuned to soothe me.
Your arms were molded
Into a cradle to hold me, to rock me.
The scent of your body was the air
Perfumed for me to breathe.
Mother, during those early, dearest days I did not dream that you had
A large life which included me,
For I had a life
Which was only you.
Time passed steadily and drew us apart.
I was unwilling.
I feared if I let you go
You would leave me eternally.
You smiled at my fears, saying
I could not stay in your lap forever.
That one day you would have to stand
And where would I be?
You smiled again.
I did not.
Without warning, you left me,
But you returned immediately.
You left again and returned,
I admit, quickly,
But relief did not rest with me easily.
You left again but again returned.
You left again but again returned.
Each time you reentered my world
You brought assurance.
Slowly I gained confidence.
You thought you know me,
But I did know you,
You thought you were watching me,
But I did hold you securely in my sight,
Recording every moment,
Memorizing your smiles, tracing your frowns.
In your absence
I rehearsed you,
The way you had of singing
On a breeze,
While a sob lay
At the root of your song.
The way you posed your head
So that the light could caress your face
When you put your fingers on my hand
And your hand on my arm,
I was blessed with a sense of health,
Of strength and very good fortune.
You were always
the heart of happiness to me,
Bringing nougats of glee,
Sweets of open laughter.
I loved you even during the years
When you knew nothing
And I knew everything, I loved you still. Condescendingly of course,
From my high perch
Of teenage wisdom.
I spoke sharply of you, often
Because you were slow to understand.
I grew older and
Was stunned to find
How much knowledge you had gleaned.
And so quickly.
Mother, I have learned enough now
To know I have learned nearly nothing.
On this day
When mothers are being honored,
Let me thank you
That my selfishness, ignorance, and mockery
Did not bring you to
Discard me like a broken doll
Which had lost its favor?
I thank you that
You still find something in me
To cherish, to admire and to love.
I thank you, Mother.
I love you.
[Motherhood is] the biggest gamble in the world. It is the glorious life force. It’s huge and scary, it’s an act of infinite optimism. Gilda Radner
Motivation 2020: For Mother’s Day #mothersday
History of Mother’s Day | History
Life began with waking up and loving my mother’s face. George Eliot
All that I am, or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother. Abraham Lincoln
Mother’s love is peace. It need not be acquired, it need not be deserved. Erich Fromm
Mother is the name for God in the lips and hearts of little children. William Makepeace Thackeray
The most important thing a father can do for his children is to love their mother. Theodore Hesburgh
Mama was my greatest teacher, a teacher of compassion, love, and fearlessness. If love is sweet as a flower, then my mother is that sweet flower of love. Stevie Wonder
A mother’s love for her child is like nothing else in the world. It knows no law, no pity. It dares all things and crushes down remorselessly all that stands in its path. Agatha Christie
A Brief History of Mother’s Day (US): While Mother’s Day celebrations go back as far as early Greek and Roman festivals, the impetus for our current Mother’s Day celebrations can be traced to Mothering Sunday, a Christian event that many enjoyed in Europe on the fourth Sunday in Lent. That evolved over time to what we now know as Mother’s Day, a US invention, that can be attributed to Ann Reeves Jarvis, Julia Ward Howe, and Anna Jarvis. In the mid 19th century, Ann Reeves Jarvis, mother of Anna Jarvis, started a campaign to get mothers involved in learning how to care for their children and engage in activism efforts in the US. She started her Mothers’ Day Work Club and by 1868 organized a Mothers’ Friendship Day to unite moms with former Union and Confederate soldiers and promote reconciliation. Julia Ward Howe, a women’s rights activist, wrote a Mother’s Day proclamation to promote peace in 1870 and, by 1873, campaigned to have a designated “Mother’s Peace Day” as a way to bring women together to stand for peace around the world.
Anna Jarvis is credited with creating the modern version of Mother’s Day because she not only proposed it as a way of honoring the sacrifices mothers make, after her mother died in 1905, but also because she spent her life’s work and earnings battling to keep the original premise pure and free of commercialization. From her first church celebration of Mother’s Day in May 1908 to her many efforts to get it recognized as a national holiday, which President Woodrow Wilson did in 1914 when he signed a measure to establish the second Sunday in May as Mother’s Day, Anna fought to maintain the integrity of the holiday and died in 1948 exhausting her fortune and health in her battle to keep Mother’s day sacrosanct. Did you know this?
According to a National Geographic article, there are 7 things we might not know about Mother’s Day, we learn that: 1. Mother’s Day started as an anti-war movement. Julia Ward Howe is the earliest to be attributed to starting a Mother’s Day campaign to promote peace and activism in 1872. She and others of her ilk saw a political connection to this important day. 2. A former football coach promoted an early version of Mother’s Day — and was accused of “kidnapping” the holiday. Frank Hering, coach at Univ of Notre Dame proposed a Mothering day celebration in 1904 but Anna Jarvis accused him of kidnapping the holiday. 3. FDR designed a Mother’s Day stamp. Or at least he tried. While Woodrow Wilson’s stamp was a success, FDR’s didn’t sit well with Jarvis so it was canned. 4. Mother’s Day’s founder hated those who fundraised off the holiday. Anna Jarvis didn’t approve of organizations profiteering from the holiday. 5. The mother of Mother’s Day lost everything in her fight to protect her holiday. Anna Jarvis said: “To have Mother’s Day the burdensome, wasteful, expensive gift day that Christmas and other special days have become, is not our pleasure.” She spent her life suing and battling others to protect the sanctity of the holiday to no avail. It remains a highly commercialized day even as we celebrate the basic premise conveyed on this special day – Mom is love. Honor her. 6. Courts Heard “Custody Battles” Over Mother’s Day. Anna Jarvis sued many over this holiday. She was determined to keep it a sacred day free of retail exploitation. 7. Flowers are an original tradition that endures (sort of). The white carnation was Jarvis’ choice flower because its petals hold steady as they wither instead of dropping. Today, your flower choice is entirely yours.
READ:- History of Mother’s Day
7 Things You Don’t Know About Mother’s Day’s Dark History
Motivation Mondays: APPRECIATION
Reflections: Happy Mother’s Day
Musings: In My Mother’s Garden…
MY MOTHER By Ann Taylor
Who sat and watched my infant head
When sleeping on my cradle bed,
And tears of sweet affection shed?
My Mother.
When pain and sickness made me cry,
Who gazed upon my heavy eye,
And wept for fear that I should die?
My Mother.
Who taught my infant lips to pray
And love God’s holy book and day,
And walk in wisdom’s pleasant way?
My Mother.
And can I ever cease to be
Affectionate and kind to thee,
Who wast so very kind to me,
My Mother?
Ah, no! the thought I cannot bear,
And if God please my life to spare
I hope I shall reward thy care,
My Mother.
When thou art feeble, old and grey,
My healthy arm shall be thy stay,
And I will soothe thy pains away,
My Mother. via poemhunter
To My Mother by Edgar Allan Poe
Because I feel that, in the Heavens above,
The angels, whispering to one another,
Can find, among their burning terms of love,
None so devotional as that of “Mother,”
Therefore by that dear name, I long have called you-
You who are more than mother unto me,
And fill my heart of hearts, where Death installed you
In setting my Virginia’s spirit free.
My mother- my own mother, who died early,
Was but the mother of myself; but you
Are mother to the one I loved so dearly,
And thus are dearer than the mother I knew
By that infinity with which my wife
Was dearer to my soul than its soul-life. via famouspoemsandpoets
The details for Motivation Mondays are below. Join in! The themes for APR – MAY 2020 are:
04/01 – 01 April Fool’s Day, Autism Awareness Month
04/05 – 05 Palm Sunday, 06 Int’l. Day of Sport for Devel. & Peace, 09 Holy Thursday/ Start of Passover, 10 Good Friday
04/12 – 12 Easter Sunday, 15 Jackie Robinson Day, 16 Passover (End), Nat’l. High Five Day, 17 Nat’l. Haiku Poetry Day
04/19 – 19 Bicycle Day, 21 Holocaust Remembrance of Slavery, 22 Earth Day, 24 Start of Ramadan/Arbor Day, 25 DNA Day/ World Malaria Day
04/26 – 26 World Intellectual Property Day, 28 World Day for Safety and Health at Work, 29 Duke Ellington Day/Int’l. Dance Day
MAY
05/01 – 01 May Day,
05/03 – 03 World Laughter Day/ Press Freedom Day, 05 Cinco De Mayo/ National Teacher Day/World Asthma Day, 06 National Nurses Day, 07 National Day of Prayer
05/10 – 10 Mother’s Day (US), 15 International Day of Families, 16 Armed Forces Day/International Day of Light
05/17 – 17 World Telecommunication and Information Day, 20 World Bee Day, 21 World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development, 23 Eid al Fitr Starts/Ramadan Ends/International Day to End Obstetric Fistula/World Turtle Day
05/24 – 24 National Brother Day, 25 Memorial Day, 28 Shavuot Starts, 29 International Day of UN Peacekeepers, 30 World MS Day/Shavuot ends, 31 World NO Tobacco Day
Are You Looking for Ways to Stay Creative in 2019?
- Join Our Blog Support & Engagement Group
- Check out the Daily Post for Inspiration. Resources. Idea
- Checkout Your Daily Word Prompts
- Check out SheKnows for SheKnows Living
MORE BELOW Read more…
“If we are ever to halt climate change and conserve land, water, and other resources, not to mention reduce animal suffering, we must celebrate Earth Day every day – at every meal.” Ingrid Newkirk
Motivation 2020: Earth Day Poems & Climate Action
Earth Day Network: 50 Voices for the Planet: Anthem Video
The world is changed by your example, not by your opinion. Paulo Coelho
Earth Day should encourage us to reflect on what we are doing to make our planet a more sustainable and livable place. Scott Peters
I have become convinced that climate change is the biggest threat to human rights in the 21st century. Mary Robinson
The time is past when humankind thought it could selfishly draw on exhaustible resources. We know now that the world is not a commodity. Francois Hollande
The ultimate test of man’s conscience may be his willingness to sacrifice something today for future generations whose words of thanks will not be heard. Gaylord Nelson
Saving our planet, lifting people out of poverty, advancing economic growth… these are one and the same fight. We must connect the dots between climate change, water scarcity, energy shortages, global health, food security, and women’s empowerment. Solutions to one problem must be solutions for all. Ban Ki-moon
Earth Day 2020 What is Earth Day? – 50 years ago, a highly motivated movement launched the Earth Day Network as an urgent call to action to address the many environmental issues that were and still are slowly, but surely, decimating our planet. Climate Change is a critical area of concern. While there are natural events that impact our climate, the human impact has been devastating; the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions we generate through our carbon footprint, by burning of fossil fuels like coal, oil, and gas for electricity, heat, and transportation, by deforestation, fertilizer use, livestock production and even methods we use for agriculture and road construction add to the exponential increases in emissions that impact our climate. Over the years, we have made some progress in battling the negative human impact on our planet, but there is still much work to do.
Ironically, the unprecedented Coronavirus pandemic and our shelter-in-place efforts have had a climatic impact, and given Mother Earth a much-needed respite from the daily waste from our carbon footprint, toxicity, and air pollution. But by becoming more conscientious about our individual roles, we can do more. This year, our Earth Day 2020 theme is Climate Action and the goal is to get each of us to take deliberate action to help save our planet. Every positive action we take that eliminates waste and that sustains our planet can help the environment by combating pollutants and reversing/reducing climate change. Is it feasible? Sure. If we all do our part, anything can be achieved. On Wednesday, April 22, we will gather at different venues around the world to celebrate Earth Day and remember that, for our collective survival on the planet, it is imperative that we protect and nurture our earth by reducing our carbon footprint and increasing plant life that purifies our atmosphere. When we participate in taking actions that sustain our planet and remind our friends and family to be a bit more sensitive to how they use our natural resources, we are performing a powerful act.
READ: Motivation Mondays: Protect Our Earth
Motivation Mondays: Earth Day for Environmental & Climate Literacy
A crash course on climate change, 50 years after the first Earth Day
Motivation Mondays: Peace with Our Past
Earth Day BY JANE YOLEN
I am the Earth
And the Earth is me.
Each blade of grass,
Each honey tree,
Each bit of mud,
And stick and stone
Is blood and muscle,
Skin and bone.
And just as I
Need every bit
Of me to make
My body fit,
So Earth needs
Grass and stone and tree
And things that grow here
Naturally.
That’s why we
Celebrate this day.
That’s why across
The world we say:
As long as life,
As dear, as free,
I am the Earth
And the Earth is me.
Earth, You Have Returned to Me BY ELAINE EQUI
Can you imagine waking up
every morning on a different planet,
each with its own gravity?
Slogging, wobbling,
wavering. Atilt
and out-of-sync
with all that moves
and doesn’t.
Through years of trial
and mostly error
did I study this unsteady way —
changing pills, adjusting the dosage,
never settling.
A long time we were separate,
O Earth,
but now you have returned to me.
“You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference and you have to decide what kind of a difference you want to make.” Jane Goodall
Motivation 2020: Earth Day Poems & Climate Action
Climate change is no longer some far-off problem; it is happening here, it is happening now. Barack Obama
Climate change is sometimes misunderstood as being about changes in the weather. In reality, it is about changes in our very way of life. Paul Polman
Only when the last tree has died and the last river been poisoned and the last fish been caught will we realize we cannot eat money. Cree Indian Proverb
A nation that destroys its soils destroys itself. Forests are the lungs of our land, purifying the air and giving fresh strength to our people. Franklin D. Roosevelt
I have long understood that climate change is not only an environmental issue – it is a humanitarian, economic, health, and justice issue as well. Frances Beinecke
We are all living together on a single planet, which is threatened by our own actions. And if you don’t have some kind of global cooperation, nationalism is just not on the right level to tackle the problems, whether it’s climate change or whether it’s technological disruption. Yuval Noah Harari
What is driving this action? Our planet is in grave danger from the overuse and abuse of our natural resources and the climatic impact is devastating. You can make a difference even by taking a small action with reducing our carbon footprint, food and other products waste control, and a reduction in air pollution. Did you know that 20 million people responded to that first call to action in 1970? Did you know that the effort bore fruit because it led to the passage of the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, Endangered Species Act, and other shapeshifting environmental laws? So, don’t believe the naysayers who think the actions of a few can’t effect change. It can because when our hearts and minds agree that our actions can make a difference, we can move mountains. When we spread the word, we are reminding ourselves and others that we are beneficiaries of Mother Earth’s largess and that maintaining both a sustainable planet and a pollution-free environment is a crucial legacy to leave to our children. Making sure our planet is thriving is vital to our survival too. I don’t want my children to inherit a futuristic, toxic world with no trees, no bees, and little animal life. However, if we continue to abuse our earth, we will soon find ourselves living in a gas-filled world with masks and steel as our daily companions. Come back for more!
Did You Know These 7 Facts? 1. Atmospheric CO2 concentrations are at a record high: greater than 400 ppm. 2. We dump 19.4 billion pounds of plastic into the ocean every year. 3. An estimated 18 million acres of forest are lost each year. 4. Earth is facing a 40% shortfall in water supply by 2030. 5. Climate change-related extreme events, plus population growth, could increase hunger by up to 20% by 2050. 6. September Arctic sea ice extent is declining at a rate of 13.3% per decade. 7. Earth is at its warmest start on record. Sources: NOAA, NASA, Science Mag study, WFP, UNESCO, FAO, Live Science We must take massive action to save our planet.
READ: The Causes of Climate Change
Photo Challenge: #EARTHDAY
Motivation Mondays: Earth Hour #Connect2Earth
Weekly Photo Challenge: Mother Earth
Morning Poem by Mary Oliver
Every morning
the world
is created.
Under the orange
sticks of the sun
the heaped
ashes of the night
turn into leaves again
and fasten themselves to the high branches —
and the ponds appear
like black cloth
on which are painted islands
of summer lilies.
If it is your nature
to be happy
you will swim away along the soft trails
for hours, your imagination
alighting everywhere.
And if your spirit
carries within it
the thorn
that is heavier than lead —
if it’s all you can do
to keep on trudging —
there is still
somewhere deep within you
a beast shouting that the earth
is exactly what it wanted —
each pond with its blazing lilies
is a prayer heard and answered
lavishly,
every morning,
whether or not
you have ever dared to be happy,
whether or not
you have ever dared to pray.
from Dream Work (1986) by Mary Oliver
The details for Motivation Mondays are below. Join in! The themes for MAR – APR 2020 are:
03/01 – 01 Zero Discrimination Day
03/08 – 08 International Women’s Day, 13 World Sleep Day, 14 Pi Day
03/15 – 15 Consumer Rights Day, 17 St Patrick’s Day, 19 Start of Spring, 20 International Day of Happiness, 21 World Poetry Day
03/22 – 22 World Water Day, 25 Day of Remembrance of Slavery, 28 Earth Hour
03/29 – 29 Veterans Day
04/01 – 01 April Fool’s Day, Autism Awareness Month
04/05 – 05 Palm Sunday, 06 Int’l. Day of Sport for Devel. & Peace, 09 Holy Thursday/ Start of Passover, 10 Good Friday
04/12 – 12 Easter Sunday, 15 Jackie Robinson Day, 16 Passover (End), Nat’l. High Five Day, 17 Nat’l. Haiku Poetry Day
04/19 – 19 Bicycle Day, 21 Holocaust Remembrance of Slavery, 22 Earth Day, 24 Start of Ramadan/Arbor Day, 25 DNA Day/ World Malaria Day
04/26 – 26 World Intellectual Property Day, 28 World Day for Safety and Health at Work, 29 Duke Ellington Day/Int’l. Dance Day
Are You Looking for Ways to Stay Creative in 2019?
- Join Our Blog Support & Engagement Group
- Check out the Daily Post for Inspiration. Resources. Idea
- Checkout Your Daily Word Prompts
- Check out SheKnows for SheKnows Living
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