Earth Day Schmearth Day

Posted on April 21, 2009 by elizabeth

I'm keeping my kids home from school tomorrow. No, we're not playing hooky. We'll be doing actual school work. Because on Earth Day, there's no school work. It's Environmental Indoctrination Day!

Last year, one of my sons had to write an apology letter to planet Earth. The letter started out: Dear Earth, I'm sorry for polluting you.

This year he read a book that encouraged him to tell his parents to take shorter showers. Because (this was the real suggestion) he's worried about the water bill.

First of all, it's wrong to enlist children as moral arbiters against their parents. Is this what the Green movement represents? A eco-friendly version of Hitler Youth?

Besides, what a flagrant waste of my tax dollars. I'm not a teacher, but I can think of dozens of better ways for my kids to spend their time in school. And it doesn't include writing apology letters to a NON-SENTIENT object.

What's next? People knocking our door and demanding to go over our electric bill? Oh, wait. That's already happening!

We've gotten at least 6 "money-saving offers" from the electric company. They want to install a remote-controlled device on our A/C. So THEY can turn our A/C on and off for us.

Hello, Big Brother. I didn't realize I was living in 1984.

But now I do. I realized this when my eldest daughter came running downstairs to inform me that I was wasting mega-watts. Because one light was on upstairs.

Then she asked me if we could drive less because "we're punching a hole in the ozone layer."

Look, I'm all for recycling and not being wasteful. Truly. I think it's important.

But someone is telling my kids that being green is the most important thing they can do with their lives. How do I know this?

Because this morning I casually mentioned that: "Saving planet Earth is not the most important thing you can do with your life."

And one of my children said: "Really? It's not?"

–crickets chirping–

Yeah, tomorrow my kids won't be in school.

We have some deprogramming to do.

updated to add: after speaking further with Matt, we have decided to send the kids to school tomorrow with a special assignment. they are to listen, write down their questions and report back to us tomorrow evening. at that time we will have a family pow-wow to discuss global warming, green living and how, as Christians, we are to live out our faith in this area. This should be interesting!

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  • http://www.simplyeclectic.blgospot.com Suezi Gurzi

    just a little 411
    that little device has been on our AC for 5 years and it has never been used. If it has we have not been home. It saves us hundreds of dollars each summer. I did not get it for the Earth i got it installed for my pocket book. :)

  • http://heathershodgepodge.blogspot.om Heather

    Yet another reason I’m glad I’m no longer a public school teacher! I despised earth week and the election season!

  • http://www.ardamar.blogspot.com colleen

    this has been an issue that has bothered me a lot lately. i think both sides (as in all cases with any issue) have taken things too far.
    In response to this society shoving environmentalism down our throats, a lot of Christians have become completely lackadaisical about our responsibility.
    God told us that we are stewards of this earth, He created it for us and i believe we should care for and treat it as the gift that it is.
    But knowing it is being used as an excuse to expand government is infuriating, and convincing us to revolve our lives around (essentially making a religion of) these ideals is becoming more and more absurd.

    Even aside from the obvious fact that the Lord and His work is our priority and thing we must devote our lives to, there are still the issues of sickness, hunger, violence, drugs, abortion, human trafficking, etc. that, i feel, are (GASP) more important than the icebergs, and even polar bears.

    interesting years coming up here, no? ;)

  • http://www.abbyosborn.blogspot.com abby osborn

    i am an oregonian so therefor live in the land of reduce, reuse, recycle…(although i was born and raised in so cal and have only been in or for 18 months). if you are not carrying a fabric bag while riding your bike wearing sustainable clothing and eating local organic foods then you are just a big idiot and often critisized. i recently heard a sermon that too many people are making green living their idols. they believe that by living green that it is not only the most important way to live, but also the only thing that is going to save them! while it is good to live a more green lifestyle, it is not good to make this your idol or think that it’s going to save you.

    way to go on keeping your kids out of school. i may do that as well.

  • http://www.elizabethesther.com Elizabeth Esther

    Suezi: thanks for the info. Still, it’s an issue of principle for me. I don’t want anyone (esp. the gov’t) telling me what to do or how to live my life. I am capable of making responsible, moral decisions on my own. Including when or if to run my A/C. :)

    Colleen: yes, it’s the imbalance that bothers me. There needs to be moderation on both sides. Libs have elevated conservation to religion status. Right-wingers shouldn’t react by being wasteful b/c we are called to be stewards of the Earth. Stewards but not slaves. The Earth was made for man, not man for the Earth. :)

    abby: it’s chilling that if we don’t fall in line with being Green, we are called idiots. that’s one step away from discrimination, in my book.

  • http://www.usborneconnection.com Tressa

    Ditto on Colleen’s comment.

  • Mary Brooke Baria

    Wow. Asking the earth for *forgiveness*…Wow. This is probably rude and not the time or place, but why don’t you keep your kids home so that they can read? You are a reader and I didn’t read much in school so now I love it that my children can read the best during their best hours. Ok, rude comment, I know.
    Mary Brooke

  • http://thewilcoxes.blogspot.com/ Cara

    The way that you and your husband are handling this sounds really good. I love that you’ve challenged your kids to listen and think critically at school and then come home to download and discuss. Hopefully it will also encourage your kids to continue to make you their most trusted authorities, rather than swallowing whole everything they hear at school. (And who can blame them? Teachers are supposed to KNOW, right?) I hope it’s a great family round table. Will you do a follow-up post to let us know how it all turns out?

    Sounds like you guys are doing a great job of helping your kids be in the world but not of it.

  • http://www.elizabethesther.com Elizabeth Esther

    Cara: Thank you! Yes, a round table discussion is precisely what we’re planning to do. In fact, they brought home some great ideas and thoughts today. So, I’m super excited about this. I totally think it’s important to teach our kids how to think critically–while they’re in the middle of it–and then talk about it at home.

    I will do a follow-up post! I think it’s gonna be a great day!

  • http://www.elizabethesther.com Elizabeth Esther

    Mary Brooke: not a rude comment at all! Thanks for sharing! I did initially consider keeping them home, but then I decided to try out a different approach. The kids are all excited about going on this “special mission” to their school to listen, think and then discuss later tomorrow evening. Hopefully it goes well. We’ll see! I’m excited about it!!!

  • http://www.usborneconnection.com Tressa

    We home school, so our approach to Smearth Day is different. I went to the local school and picked up some of their “literature” (I use that term loosely) on Earth Day and asked to see their curriculum for the day.

    We are going to show what the secular world believes and then follow up with what we, as a Christian family, believes.

    We’ll ask questions: What do you think about that? How can we protect the earth God gave us without making the earth our idol? That sort of thing.

  • Jessica

    The New Testament distills these notions and adds a strong activist imperative with its account of stewardship. This activist element is a vital alternative to some of the more extreme ethical positions in reactionary ecological ethics. The parable of the good steward in Luke 12:41-48 and the parable of the talents in Matthew 25:14-30 summarize the concept. The preservation of what is given “in trust” demands a recognition of the owner’s dictates for the resources. We must know the limits and laws of the world in order to use them wisely. Our actions must be guided, in part, by concerns for future generations. Above all, we must never knowingly exhaust or ruin what has been given to us. If doing so is absolutely necessary to sustain life, then equity demands that we must leave some equally accessible and beneficial legacy to replace what has been exhausted.

  • Jennifer

    I love this idea! And, as Heather said, I’m also so glad that I’m not working in public schools anymore.

    Elizabeth, way to go to take a stand. I can’t wait to hear how your day goes tomorrow. Do I hear homeschooling in your future??? :)

  • http://heartpondering.wordpress.com/ Susan @ HeartPondering

    Wow. I wish I could say I were surprised, but even though I’m not, I’m still dismayed!

    I agree heartily with Cara about how you and your husband are handling it… And I love (and often myself use) the notion of ‘deprogramming’ the world’s value system. Environmentalism (and I’m a crunchy myself) is the last and most accpetable religion of secular America today.

  • http://karennkool.blogspot.com karenkool

    I’m glad our school doesn’t go “all out” on earth day. They are, however, planting a tree in remembrance of the student we just lost in a car accident last week. Sometimes tragedies cause people to remember the realities of life–taking the focus off a “NON-SENTIENT object” and caring for one another as we grieve our loss.

    Meanwhile, planned parenthood is coming today to speak to the 5th graders about their maturing bodies. Oy! It give us an opportunity to discuss things with our daughter, like what you’re doing with your kids on earth day.

  • WendyLou

    karenkool –

    It’s probably too late, but I wouldn’t let Planned Parenthood anywhere NEAR my 5th grader. My oldest is in 5th grade, and my body would be positioned very defensively between her and ANY abortion-promoting lunatic. No, they won’t mention abortion in their talk.

    Instead they’ll talk very gently about how a girl’s body is her own. Inference: to do with as she pleases. In fact her body belongs to our God Almighty and is to be stewarded (since we’re on that subject) accordingly.

    They’ll jokingly laugh about how sometimes parents don’t understand, so they can trust PP to understand and not judge if they need to talk about anything. Inference: Your parents are out of touch and can’t be trusted with your most intimate issues. The whole ‘not judging’ load implies that there are no moral absolutes.

    Be not decieved!! PP is very crafty and very skillful at drawing in the undefended. ‘But she’s only in 5th grade. Chill. They’re not going to haul her off to some back room and strap her down to a table.’ No. In 5th grade they’re beginning the relationship. Carefully developing a trusting relationship. Just offering an ‘option.’

    Can you tell that I’m extremely passionate about this?? Elizabeth – I’m sorry to have hijacked your blog for my soapbox. I’ll step down now …

  • http://www.conversiondiary.com Jennifer (Conversion Diary)

    Wow, great post. I can’t wait to read an update and hear how it went!

  • http://terrysoapbox.blogspot.com terry@breathing grace

    Okay, Elizabeth, let me apologize up front for continuing to steer your blog AWAY from your very well written post on Earth Day. Surprisingly, it’s not a big deal here. One of my kids didn’t even know it was Earth Day until they saw the morning paper…And they go to public school.

    I do want to add on to the discussion started by karenkool…

    It is almost impossible to avoid the influence of Planned Parenthood as your children get into the 5th grade and beyond. The only option is to pull them out of school on the days when PP is scheduled to be on campus. But here’s the problem. Down here where I live, the middle schools teach sex ed as a part of normal science curriculum. And down here, the CDC as well as PP provides funding for what’s being taught. Since it’s just another part of science class, these lessons have been taught many times without parents ever knowing.

    What I do: go to the school at the beginning of the year and find out where on the syllabus/calendar this stuff is to be taught. Require that the teacher send written notification in advance of the lesson so that you know when it will be atught. Go to the school, ask for the curriculum, and review it for yourself. This, in my case, was very time consuming. Even after going with another Christian friend who tackled half of it with me. It was exhaustive and there was no way of knowing which parts would be taught and which parts will be left out. And their are subtle hints all throughout the curriculum on how kids can talk to “a trusted friend” about any issues they have. And abortion is an option discussed. Abstinence is given its obligatory nod, but only in the context of all other options.

    Best bet? Find out the days they’ll be teaching it and pull the kids out. Of course, in middle school, this means they may miss valuable info from other classes.

    Frankly, it’s all a lot of hassle. But all of our older kids will be out of school soon, and the little ones, God-willing, will never darken the door of a public school.

  • Kathy

    I’ve got a little deprogramming of my own to do.

    My 10 year old, homeschooled since birth daughter said, “Real Christians don’t celebrate Earth Day.”

    I said: “Real Christians walk in grace and express their opinions in kindness.”

    Sigh.

  • http://www.elizabethesther.com Elizabeth Esther

    Terry: wow, I cannot imagine PP coming to school. If that happens here, I will be SO ALL OVER IT! :) Thanks for the heads up.

    Kathy: yes, it’s going to be an interesting discussion tonight..I’m interested to see how we can mitigate this issue in good conscience. We want to be good stewards of the Earth. Maybe a little self-examination is due on my own part, eh? Thanks for the comment.