I admit to being scared of stuff.  Babies, apparently, require a lot of stuff.  We’re trying to come to terms with the sheer volume of stuff required…you could say we’re trying to find a balance.  Why am I scared of stuff?  It’s complicated, but this video does a good job at capturing some of the major issues:

We understand that we’re going to have to acquire more stuff, no way around that.  But we at least want to minimize the amount of stuff we buy and the environmental impact of our purchases.  Environmental impacts are a major consideration for many of our decisions, and it was definitely a factor that we discussed during our 10+ year decision process on whether or not to procreate.

We want to be conscious consumers.  This is not always easy to do.  It isn’t exactly pleasant to think that every purchase we make has an impact on the planet.  But, pleasant or not, it is undeniably true.  Our latest (May 28th) issue of the Economist just arrived with this foreboding topic adorning the cover: Welcome to the Anthropocene: Geology’s new age.  The first line of the cover story is: “Humans have changed the way the world works. Now they have to change the way they think about it, too.”  I couldn’t agree more!

Although we (Aaron and I) chose to be aware of the environmental impacts of our decisions, I can see why people would rather NOT think about these things.  It is much easier and more pleasant to ignore the fact that every purchase we make has an effect — more often than not, a negative effect — on the environment.  Ignorance may be bliss…but only for the short term.  The problems we’ve created will not simply go away if we stick our heads in the sand.

Geez…that is really depressing, isn’t it?  Don’t think for a moment that I spend all my time sulking about the blatant disregard the human race generally exhibits for our planet.  That is not the case at all…because I have HOPE.

I’m not always sure where it (HOPE) comes from…but I’m pretty sure that these things help:

Flowers on South Crest Trail in the Sandia Mountains, NM

Humpback whales in the Bay of Banderas, Mexico

Sunset over Pacific, Mexico

Wheeler Peak, NM

I believe that we all have the power to make changes for the better.  I believe that we can chose how we affect the world everyday through our purchases, our attitudes, and our actions.  Whether or not we acknowledge this power is just another choice.

Without hope, I would not have chosen to bring another person into this world.  For the sake of the Little Bean growing in my belly and all the rest of us, I hope more people chose to recognize reality and the power they hold to change it.