The kids are alright
As we watch the truly invigorated and global uproar of so many youth for the climate strike, we find ourselves, once again, taking a cue from the kids.
It can feel a little helpless within the four walls of our home. What can we do to make the world healthier for future generations? There’s almost no call to change more overwhelming than this one — Save the world! — and none with a greater capacity to shrink our sense of ourselves and our impact. Facing a problem like this, we feel smaller and more helpless than ever.
But here’s the lesson from the kids. It doesn’t matter that we are small (and the problem is gigantic). It matters that we stand up despite our smallness, and not only during marches, but in our day-to-day. In our choices, of which we make dozens a day. We don’t need audacious goals or audacious results. We just need new habits, new expectations, and a new consciousness. And, perhaps, a little of the unvarnished and unspoilt optimism of kids — call if naiveté if you must, but there’s no more infectious and wonderful energy in the world. It takes us places, and it’s cumulative.
This week, we’re cheering for all the young people making noise for their birthright: a livable and sustainable planet. Can any one of us make it happen? Nope. No way. But together, the mindset shifts and heart shifts are tectonic. Go kids go!
