“How can I help stop global warming?”
“Simple ways to fight climate change.”
If you try to google something similar to these headlines, you will find plenty of different articles with several tips on how to fight climate change.
I myself have googled them more than once. Some of them I apply in my daily life, some of them I don’t. Some people around me also pay attention to their habits, in order to act more responsibly and eco-friendly.
But on many occasions, I notice that even those who would like to act accordingly simply – surrender.
One of the common reasons they state is that one individual simply cannot make any difference. One human can neither stop climate change nor fight global warming. Not one individual, not one hundred individuals.
We live in an industrial time, where companies and international corporations are responsible for the majority of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. And if an individual cannot stop the world’s industry from polluting our planet, then why do all those tiny steps, tips, and how-to’s in everyday life even exist?
Two months ago I visited Istria and it left a deep impression on me. Istrian towns were more charming than I could have expected. The houses were pretty, the yards tidy and well planned, with lots of thoughtfully arranged details.
All the entrances seemed to be perfectly neat and in order, but then I saw this one.
You could barely see the front door among all the plants. It was like an entrance to a secret garden. Like a splash of colours in a black and white world.
These several metres of wall belonged to someone who used them fully, showing the world that even a simple doorstep can capture everyone’s attention and cause admiration.
They did not bother if other people had a bigger doorstep or a better location, if somebody else maybe had more money to buy more exotic plants – or they did bother, but it didn’t stop them in building this piece of floral art.
Our actions do not have to change the world.
We don’t need to expect ourselves to solve global problems.
But we can learn something from this photograph. Every person has the power to make a difference around themselves.
This person, who looks after all these plants on a daily basis, knows that this tiny garden will be seen by only a limited number of neighbours and tourists. But the number of accidental admirers is not important – what matters is the proof that our life can be more beautiful and more meaningful than it is now.
A plain doorstep, yard, or street can become this.
Simple acts of effort and kindness may become a spark in someone else’s day. Simple deeds full of care could inspire someone to do the same.
Plain acts of love and care towards nature maybe cannot fix the whole world, but they can change our home, our little piece of this planet, for the better.