Today is Earth Day. Every single living thing needs the Earth. For us, breathing clean air, and walking with bare feet upon the earth opens us up to healing properties inherent in its core. Mindfully, the earth is an energetic being that suffuses us with vitality and continual rebirth when we are in connection with it. From Fields of Study - Minerals Under Your Feet -

"Minerals aren’t just objects we collect and use in our lives for healing but they are literally within the earth on which we walk. Throughout history, sacred sites as well as some cities have been constructed on top of earth and rock that have a high level of certain minerals. Our ancestors knew how to tune into the landscape and the vibration of the earth, and harness the power of the land."

If we begin locally, at home, where a love of Earth can blossom and flourish, we are actually making a global impact and improving the health of ourselves and the planet. Here are six simple things you can do today that will really make a difference:

Plant a tree
Don't flush pharmaceuticals down the toilet
Stop using pesticides on your lawn, let the violets grow!
Turn off your car when idling for longer than 10 seconds
Take a leisure walk or bike ride, noticing nature, breathing fully
Teach a child to explore a small corner of your world

Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods: Saving our Children from Nature Deficit Disorder, comments on the benefits of regular exploration of a small, local area.

"The dugout in the weeds or leaves beneath a backyard willow, the rivulet of a seasonal creek, even the ditch between a front yard and the road --- all of these places are entire universes to a young child."

This was certainly the case for me in Sanford, North Carolina, on Hermitage Road where we DID have a ditch running between our front yard and the road. It would flood up to the foundation during heavy rains. It was the place I explored with my childhood friends, and my father and I would discuss our Pooh and Piglet sightings.

Further, Louv recommends, we go to these places regularly, to watch life, and wait. He reminds readers of the Native American saying, "It is better to know one mountain than to climb many." Author Louv will be a guest in Richmond next week at Words & Wisdom, a book and author event put on by the Senior Board of Children's Hospital Foundation, titled "A Nature-Rich Life". Tickets are still available if you hop quickly and call the Foundation at 804-228-5827.

On Earth Day I leave you with a link to that National Geographic Kids Article - 5 Reasons Why You Should Love the Earth,these six simple things you can do, and a wish.

Let today be the first day of the rest of your life with a new devotion to honoring and protecting the intrinsic synergies we have with our planet Earth.