Inspirational Quote

We celebrate progress
Not perfection
Because progress is reality
Perfection is a myth

@WordsPenspoken

Life guide Quote

Abjuring violence and harm- Quote From Chapter 32.

Excerpt from the Book Thirukkural English version. (A glasnost spectrum of an encrypted life guide thro’ the prism of time) by J. Narayanasamy

To learn more about Thiruvalluvar a great historic author and Tamil poet- click here.

🎼Heat waves 🔥are freaking me out 🎼

Picture credit: Sheny Amaya

Gloria was driving her son to Horse riding lessons that morning. She got an unexpected question during the 20 minute drive.

Pablo: “Mommy, what does freaking me out mean?”

Gloria: “Why?”

Pablo: “It comes up in the Heatwave song…”

Gloria: “Oh okay…you know how surprise works? – it’s a good kind of feeling, but it is sudden- like you didn’t know it was coming. So freaking out  is sort of like the opposite of that. It is a scared kind of feeling that happens suddenly.”

She came up with an example for him to understand: “Hey so if you are in school and you hear that I had a car accident, wouldn’t you freak out?“

As she pulled up at a red signal she turned around to see if he got it.

There was a muffled giggle as he looked back at her.

She was appalled and said: “So you think it is funny that I have had a car accident?” The signal turned green and as she turned left it took her but a few seconds to realize what the giggling was about.

Gloria: “Pablo!!! Not a pee-pee accident in the car!”

There was an explosion of laughter for that. Thats right, he has always loved bathroom humor. 

She knew she had to come up with a different example at this point, if she wanted to stay on topic.

Gloria: “Like, what if you hear that I was hurt and I was in the hospital?” Now that he understood.

And then, he went on to ask: “Why does the song say Heat waves are freaking me out? Is the heat wave like a big wave from the ocean that is scary?”

Photo by Pexels

With complete ignorance on what the song was really about or the lyrics, she extended an explanation with the limited knowledge she had:

“Sweetie, heat waves have nothing to do with ocean waves. It is called heat waves because of heat traveling in the air like waves. It is nothing to be scared of, but it is something to be sad about. It is happening because of climate change. We, the people have not taken good care of the earth. We cut down a lot more trees than we should’ve and so the air on the earth is getting hotter and hotter and hotter than it should be and therefore resulting in heat waves.”

Pablo: “Okay, but we can turn on the A/C if it gets really hot right?”

Gloria: “Yeah that’s right, but if you think about people who don’t have a house and who cannot afford an air conditioner, they could die from the heat if it is too much for the human body to take. All we can do is be more climate-conscious and do what we can for the earth. I haven’t done much so far other than understanding what I can recycle and what I cannot recycle in my town and put them in the right trash cans, because that way, at least we are not adding items that can be recycled to the great pile of stinky trash on the earth!”

Sweet Pablo goes “Mommy, can we plant a tree in our house to save the earth?”

Gloria: “Aiyaiyai, I’m Sorry man, we don’t have enough space in our backyard, but maybe we can find an event in our town where we can go plant a tree in a space owned by someone else?”

But for those interested in planting trees- this maybe a cool thing to do!-Plant a tree.

When she came back home and actually listened to the song to see if her answers were right, It was quite hilarious to notice that the song was in no way connected to Climate Change. And the lyrics did not even say “Freaking me out”, but it said “The heat waves are faking me out”. Nevertheless, the message of the song was impressive. It turned out to be about deceptive emotions in relationships. Boy, was she glad she didn’t have to explain that to a toddler. For more perspective on the song Heatwaves by Glass Animals, the lyrics and the article of interest, Click here.

Gloria’s thoughts on What can you or I do for Climate Change?

. Take reusable bags to the grocery stores (Thinking…”When I remember to do so“) to reduce the use of plastic and also maybe think of other ways to use less plastic.

. How to Compost is something worth looking into. Click here for some background on that. If you have a garden, you can Compost food waste. If you don’t, you can research what services your town offers to recycle organic matter.

. Sharing what you know or learnt about Climate Change and ways to fight it, with friends and family or on social media.

*I had no idea that Whole Foods market is the only place in my area that would recycle No. 5 Plastic until one of my Climate-conscious friends shared that with me.

*Also I was really surprised to find out through online research and phone calls that no Plastic is accepted for recycling in my town-Numbers 1 through 5, no matter what the packaging material says.

*When I lived in an apartment I did not know that glass and aluminum cans could be recycled. And a lot of my friends didn’t either. Again each Apartment or housing community is different but the first step is awareness. The next is willingness to research and find out what services are available in your area and what you can do.

Gloria thought to herself…“Maybe I also did something good for the earth by sharing about climate change with my young son, part of the future of the earth and that’s a small win!” Small steps can make a big difference! . Click here to find some resources on how anyone and everyone can make a difference in the area of climate change.

Why should we do anything about Climate Change?

Check out Recent World News relating to the impact of Heat waves caused by Climate Change. Do your research about what is going on in the rest of the world and how it can affect the area in which you live. Click Here for an article on Heat waves in India & Pakistan on May 23, 2022.

Appreciate your presence here. My best to you. ❤️ @wordspenspoken