act2 - GreenSmart Notebook - Tom Larsen

A Week of Historic Proportions

It seems to me whether you were blue or red in this past election cycle, that by now, it must have dawned on just about everyone that something happened this week that is beyond the expectations of the typical Presidential Election.

I'm not a kid anymore, so I've seen a few of these elections over the years. I don't really remember people poring into the streets in Asia, Europe, Africa or in cities across America as they did as the results came in for the process of American democracy in action - our Presidential Elections. I didn't really get the historical significance through the primaries, either. Sure, I was able to acknowledge that either candidate would have a positive impact and a negative impact, politically. That either way, an African-American would be President or a woman would be VP and that would be cool. That was the scope of my "everyone wins" thinking. After all, I reasoned, as I always do, the President in our Country sets tone more than drafts laws, so it's always possible a really great President can be completely marginalized by a really stuck Congress.

But, as I watched the events unfold late Tuesday and into Wednesday around the world, I saw something completely different. For me it started of all places seeing Jesse Jackson crying. Jackson ran for President many years ago. And here, in this moment, in Chicago, he and hundreds, thousands of other African Americans were seeing the "proof" of the Emancipation Proclamation 146 years later that in fact, an African American can actually become President; and they were crying.

I started to get it. Then, supporting evidence weighed in from all over the globe. City after city celebrating our, that is our American statement about equality, rights, possibilities, opportunities, etc.. The next day, I saw an interview clip with Colin Powell in which he was choked up. The stoic, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, no less. To him, it was a monumental occurrence. He said his entire family was in tears. An occurrence they "never thought they would see in their lifetime".

As a result, I get it. We, in this Country hold a unique position and responsibility to provide hope and ensuing proof that all things are possible. The land of opportunity. The migration center of the world where people came to better their lives. And now, we have elected a President, fair and square, that represents that path. We are once again, a most respected Nation.

Whether Mr. Obama goes down in history as great, mediocre or lackluster, he has already provided a new level of achievement and statement about what America represents that the world appreciates faster than we do ourselves. Under most conditions in my lifetime, we witness history in tragedies and nightmares; 9/11, Kent State, Kennedy Assassination. This week, we've witnessed history in a whole new light. No riots. No funerals. No mobs. No guns. No sadness. Just enthusiasm. Our lives are the better for it. Our Country is the stronger for it. Our image in the world is far greater for it.

I hope we can all do whatever is necessary so that this moment of American strength is not ephemeral. 

Happy HalloGREEN

In July I received an email from a woman who was interested in using the GreenSmart Glossary that I created for our website in an upcoming book she and her daughter were publishing. I was intrigued by the idea of someone wanting to use the Glossary and started to do some research on the woman and her concept.

The women are Lynn Colwell and Corey Colwell-Lipson and their book is Celebrate Green!  Creating  Eco-Savvy Holidays, Celebrations & Traditions for the Whole Family. Their story is pretty unique and very brief, so I'll share it.

For Halloween '06, Corey was escorting her kids as millions of Americans do, around for Trick or Treating. As with so many who come to eco-consciousness, at some point in the evening she started thinking about all the "stuff" that was being given to her kids, virtually all candy and subsequently the effort in the costumes, etc. This new observation and awareness worked on her head and at some point the light shone in on her own participation. She asked herself whether it "had" to be this way or if there weren't some other choices.

To figure it out, over the course of the winter and spring she talked to friends and other parents to see how the reception would be to making changes and if so, what changes would they be. Eventually she had to go to the real world to see what the reception would be like from a retailer presented with the insights she had gained. In May of '07 she had her answer from her local Natural Foods Store where she went to "gauge interest". The answer was a loud "yes". From there, she started telling others, recruited her mom to join her and thus began Green Halloween, a now national movement to Green up the Halloween Holiday.

Not to stop at a single holiday, the pair decided to look at all holidays and celebrations, most of which are much more personal than Halloween. This spawned the book, which is chock full of ideas, recipes, practices, websites, insights and stories. For free are the many lessons in the book which even if you don't embrace the practice, you'll reconsider your options with a new lens, which is what eco-consciousness is all about.

From Green Halloween to Green Weddings to Green Birthdays or Father's Day, etc., this book is a wonderfully comprehensive look at how we celebrate and how we can rethink and reconsider our habits or practices. The GreenSmart Glossary, which is in the Appendix in the back, just before the Index, doesn't pay me any royalties, so this isn't a sales pitch for the money. It's a pitch for the content, to which I'm grateful to be associated and which I think is top notch stuff for what most of us think of as a "special day" when we can throw caution to the wind. Corey and Lynn remind us that celebration and eco-consciousness are not mutually exlusive. Good for them which can be good for all of us.

You can get the book at our retail website aGreenPlace4U.com. List price is $24.95. At our site it's only $19.95. If you want multiple copies, send me an email and we'll work something out. info(at)act2greensmart(dot)com and put Books in the subject line.