The Lorax and Lucy's Greenpeace Team: Eco-Warriors

Today I was watching the trailer for the "new" movie that has been made from Dr. Seuss' The Lorax. Now, Dr Seuss has always been one of my favorite writers. Sound strange coming from a grown woman? Well, maybe it shouldn't. Dr. Seuss, Ted Geisel, had a way of telling stories about important issues, instilling values into my young mind, by using silliness as his vessel. I could understand the concepts he was teaching, but I was often fooled into thinking they were just stories, not lessons.

We'll take this story as an example. It was not nearly as disguised as some of the other stories in his long list of great books; but I sure got the point. The Lorax. He spoke for the trees. If not him, who would have spoken for the voiceless, living things that were the beautiful Truffula trees? He did his best to make a stand against the technology that invaded his world. When that technology destroyed the world anyway, because of the Once-ler, the Lorax's passion for the trees and the fauna living among them finally dawned on said Once-ler, who remained in his sad, lonely, polluted world until a curious boy came along to whom he could tell his sad tale, and trust with the last Truffula seed. Replant and rebuild. All was not entirely lost.

The power of one. It is real.

By teaching our children that they do indeed have a voice - they can and must be counted - we teach them not to stand idle when the things they believe in are threatened.   There are ways we can make a difference, and we must.

By example, Lucy Lawless and her Greenpeace crew of 7 clambered aboard a ship bound for the Arctic that is bent on drilling for oil there. They didn't stop the ship. They had to pay the consequences of their actions - but they were heard. People noticed. Perhaps the drilling will still happen; but we will always remember Lucy and the other eco-warriors climbing up the rigging on the ship and declaring their intentions, Twittering about it, and getting 133,000 people to follow their cause.



See Lucy In Action


There are more stories being generated now about that very thing - people petitioning for it to stop - to help prevent the very real possibilities of the calamities that could befall the pristine Arctic, should an oil spill occur there.

We have had "Loraxes" for years, trying to tell us to heed the warning signs. Listen to our bodies, listen to the Earth. What will it take to get out attention?

There are positives as well. People who care, with recognizable names are trying to get awareness of these causes out.  Companies are "going green" and making a big deal about it. We are working to help our children understand that we must be doers and shakers, not just speakers and thinkers.

Now the question is, what can I do? I'm not Lucy, nor am I the Lorax. Surely I can make a contribution somehow. I can become educated - and help educate others. None of us can turn back the clock, but in going forward, we are all at choice points. What is next? How do we do the right thing?