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Earth Day celebration tonight in Agassiz

On Thursday evening, April 28, 2 films will be showing at the United Church in Agassiz, with a focus on Earth Day. 
It’s amazing now to think that the very first Earth day took place on April 22, 1970, initiated by a United States Senator by the name of Gaylord Nelson. He was concerned about what was happening in the environment and hoped to bring this growing issue into the political spotlight. It has now taken place throughout the world every April 22 for the last 40 years!
This year, a film night will be held a week after Earth Day, but then as we all know, this day is symbolic , for Earth day really is every day.

With so much to consider when trying to be  “green”, it becomes rather overwhelming. We all know what we need to do… recycle,  simplify, consume less, and become more aware, but something seems to be missing in our daily approach to it. Perhaps to put more meaning in to it, what we need is to rediscover something that might have been forgotten, by some of us. Perhaps we need to remember what we used to feel .

Do you remember that sense of wonder you felt as a young child when following a dragonfly or a butterfly in your back yard? Do you remember the excitement of discovery when you found a broken Robin’s egg in the spring or found your first dandelion of the year? Do you remember the thrill of lifting a rock in a tidal pool or in a forest and seeing the life beneath? Do you remember the feeling you had when watching a frog jump, climbing a tree, lying on your back  watching the clouds drift by, or  looking up at the sky on a summer night?

It has been said that until we regain this awe of all life on our planet earth and feel again a sense of wonder and connection to every living thing, we won’t be completely committed to saving it. A quote from the late Biologist Stephen Jay Gould sums it up best: “We cannot win this battle to save species and environments without forging an emotional bond between ourselves and nature as well – for we will not fight to save what we do not love”.

The first film we are showing on this evening is called..”The Awakening Universe”, an inspiring short film that takes us on a journey from the birth of the universe, the galaxies, our sun, earth, life, and finally, to human awareness and the role our species plays. It reminds us of how all life is connected.

This will be followed by the film,  “Water on the Table”, which is a profile of  Canadian Activist, Maude Barlow, and her fight to have water declared a “Human Right” . It takes us from the Tar Sands in Alberta to Ontario and Quebec. As much as it is the story of Maude, it is also the story of the beauty of water and what is at stake in the debate over it’s future.

Come out on Thursday, April 28 at 7 p.m. and become informed and inspired .

Submitted by Agassiz United Church and ACES (Action Committee for Environmental Stewardship Society).