14 Jan, 2012
Florida– your easy winters defy the American notions of seasons. But that ease won’t last forever. In the coming years, your beachfronts and watersides will be reshaped by rising sea levels. Your roads and developments will require dramatic restructuring. As loving neighbors, will we prepare for these changes in a way that will minimize suffering, or will we only hear the cries when it is too late to diminish them?
Greetings from Jacksonville, compadres! It has been an active week here. In true Florida fashion, there were CarbonSabbath talks at a retirement community, in a Spanish-speaking service, one in shorts, and even a visit to the beach. In all of those visits, the reality of climate change seemed to hit home in a way that was very concrete. For many participants, the estimated sea level rise will directly affect their property or those of their neighbors. For them, love of neighbor in the face of climate change is about their actual, physical neighbors. This reality heightened the importance of our discussions and brought a depth of concern that is not always apparent in the groups I visit.
On my way down to Jacksonville, I stopped off at Cumberland Island for a few days of solitude in pristine island wilderness. This island is a national treasure. There are wild horses, beaches full of beautiful shells, mossy trees filled with startling variety of birds, and deep quiet. If you ever have the chance to visit, I highly recommend it.
Today, I start my journey westward! Thanks to all of you for sharing the journey thus far!
More aware of the water’s rise
Than we thought possible