This article, written by Cari Stone, is gratefully re-published from a work originally titled “The Green Scene: Why Should I Care?” Email rich@arochasb.org for a complete copy in .pdf

Today’s entry is part one of five from the article and is intended to be digested as a unified piece. I have chosen to create artificial sections or parts in order to invite the reader to start the journey via smaller bits over the course of this week, but also have the immediacy of consecutive blog entries devoted to this article in order to preserve the author’s original intent.

The Green Scene – Why Should I Care?
By Cari Stone
“To move from thought to action, we must feel some discomfort with who we are. We will not develop any discontent if we compare ourselves to people who behave more selfishly than ourselves.” – J. Matthew Sleeth
Several months ago I came across journalist Michael Pollan’s book, IN DEFENSE OF FOOD: AN EATERS MANIFESTO. His mantra of, eat food, not too much, mostly plants didn’t strike me as particularly dramatic, since I’ve had a mostly vegetarian diet for years. Yet as the story developed, I began to realize that this poignant read was one of many entry points into an arena, environmental stewardship, that I’ve failed to take seriously in my life. And so, like any other type-A, compassionate achiever might do, I read the book in forty-eight hours and promptly panicked.
For initial solace I turned to comparison. When I stacked myself up against a Midwestern fast food enthusiast for example, I came out okay. Likewise, Walmart consumers, pesticide producers and litterers all left me on the up and up as well, and with a severe case of inertia.
I then turned to personal inventory. There were things that I had done. I’d purchased Trader Joes canvas bags years ago so as to not waste their disposable counterparts. I buy almost all organic produce, including heavily packaged red peppers and basil from Mexico in winter. Hmm. I’m a consistent, although not very educated recycler. While our bin sits on the curb each week, my accuracy rate as to what ought to be in this container and what actually is in it (i.e. cans with tomato paste remnants and questionable wax-lined cartons), falls in the B- range.
Understanding my propensity to spin aimlessly through loads of content only to find myself further overwhelmed by it all I opted to take a big breath. I then purchased an additional four books, and spent countless hours on the internet in order to further deprecate…oh I mean educate myself on how my family and I might adopt a bit more of the green lifestyle.
To be honest, the further I delve into this topic, the more dramatic my moods have swung. On one side of the spectrum I find myself feeling fairly adept at going about my everyday life without truly considering how my choices are impacting the greater good. I mean really, I’m a fairly personable individual who most would describe as thoughtful and considerate toward those around me. However, lately as I climb into bed at night and attach my Mighty Bright book light to my latest read on this subject my soul contracts. (I’m including a list of recommended readings for those who’d like to join me in my unrest). Why is my family of three traveling the town in a car designed for six? Why do I continue to purchase a Pete’s latte without regard for how my patronage may impact shade grown villagers in far off places? Do I really need an 1800 square foot dwelling? What messages am I sending my daughter through these and other everyday decisions? And where exactly does highlighting my hair and using plastic baggies to pack my husband’s lunch fit into this whole equation?
I’ll try not to belabor my point anymore than is necessary. Put simply, what I’ve grown to understand is that the area of environmental stewardship is one that I as a believer am obligated to do something about. Ignorance alone classifies these topics as merely a left-sided agenda. God’s love for creation is evident from the beginning of time. “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth…God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.” Genesis 1:1,31 In the next chapter we find that, “The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.” (Gen. 2:15). And throughout Scripture we find examples of how creation itself praises and adores its creator. “Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad, let the sea resound, and all that is in it; let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them. Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy; they will sing before the Lord.” (Psalm 96:11-13)
What I’ve realized over the past few months is that this topic seems particularly onion-like in its properties. For me, that initial book by Pollan acted as the papery outer skin. As I removed it, I was confronted with another layer and then another - many of which have left me with proverbial tears running down my face. This is daunting stuff! For whatever reason I’ve found it to be particularly overwhelming, uncomfortable and even a bit out there when I’m really honest about it. And still, my soul continues to nudge me forward.
In my quest for more knowledge and insights into this subject, I’ve spent time with some individuals in our midst here at SBCC who’ve implemented significant changes in their lifestyles over time. Their insights are tremendous and you’ll find their stories in pages that follow. First, you can read an interview with housemates, Ruth Loomer and Kelly Soifer. Having taken other steps towards a green lifestyle in years past, they’ve most recently resolved to eat only local (California grown) and organic produce from here on out. You can read the why behind this decision and also learn how they’re setting about doing this. Benji and Greta Bruneel are young married professionals who’ve decided to buy nothing new outside of consumables this year. So what happened when Greta’s watch broke one week into this venture? Lastly, I spent some time with the Robertsons and the Dixons. These families have traveled the world. Yet what they’ve brought back to their homes in Santa Barbara is a resolve for a simpler life – including live chickens, clotheslines, organic gardening and much more.
A common thread between all of these individuals and their stories is that they started small – each of them took an initial step. For me, I’ve vowed to slow down on the reading just a little in order to catch my breath and figure out what, beyond my incessant ponderings and my Trader Joes canvas bags I can do to move a bit further down the road. For my husband, he’s committed to read Matthew Sleeth’s SERVE GOD SAVE THE PLANET while our family is on vacation so that he and I can move past my prolific and somewhat scattered monologues on the subject toward a more effective team approach within our home.
In closing, I’ve included in this article a list of potential first steps, a few book recommendations as well as some valuable online resources which I hope will help you further connect to this topic and begin to consider how you might better care for creation too.

Tomorrow- Part 2: “Potential First Steps” by Cari Stone

This entry re-publishes an article written by Jill in April 2008

Laundry is one of those chores that you can never fully check off your list. It’s always there and it’s time consuming. As a full time kindergarten teacher, I had come up with a system that worked really well for my family. On Friday night, I would start doing the laundry and the last load would go in the wash as we were going to bed. Saturday morning my family would awaken to piles of laundry that we would fold and put away. While this system seemed to be working I found myself dreading the beginning of the weekend. Hanging laundry on our clothesline didn’t enter my mind because I had bought into the lie that our dryer saved me time and energy and the clothesline was for hanging our wet beach towels.
Then I read Serve God, Save the Planet by Matthew Sleeth and I was convicted that my actions here in Santa Barbara could and did affect others less fortunate than myself. So this summer I stopped using the dryer and started hanging our laundry on the clothesline.
Now I did this because I was convicted that it was the right thing to do, but I went into it believing this was going to be a hardship for me. I was busy and I didn’t want to take more time for chores that I could be spending with my family. What I hadn’t bargained for was how this would impact me and my family for good. Because I was hanging the laundry on the clothesline, I could only do one or two loads of laundry at a time. This cut down on the amount of items we all had to put away at a given time. Hanging clothes on the line also cut down on the amount of ironing I had to do as the clothes came off the line smelling terrific and wrinkle free. I also found myself looking forward to being outside where I could hear the birds, talk to my neighbors who were walking their dogs, and hum praise songs and even pray. My kids decided this looked like fun and started helping me hang and fold the laundry. I now had more quality time with my kids as we hung the laundry on the line together. They loved that I was totally present in our conversations and focused on them. I felt blessed.
But summer was coming to an end and I started to worry about what would happen to my resolve once I started teaching again as I would be away from home all day. That’s when I remembered the wooden laundry rack we had owned for 15 years. Now I do one load of laundry every 2 or 3 days after work and hang it inside on the wooden rack. When we get home from work the next day it’s dry. Is hanging laundry slower and sometimes inconvenient? Yes. But I have learned that slower is not bad and it puts me in a place where God can speak to me and I am actually quiet enough to listen.

Phil 2:4 says, “each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.” I’m encouraged to find that when I chose to look not just to my own interests God met me there. I am blessed by how He meets me and my family every week as we simply do laundry.

In October/November HarperOne will release a long awaited study bible, “The Green Bible”. Santa Barbara A Rocha’s friend Matthew Sleeth, Bishop Desmond Tutu, and others have provided writings that highlight the Biblical mandate to steward the created order. We had the opportunity to serve as a contributor to this project and we look forward to having this resource available.

Green Bible Announcement/Review posted January 2007

We are trying to build a collection of creation care inspired images from you that will help inspire others to join A Rocha in promoting conservation. These images are placed in the A Rocha Santa Barbara group over at Flickr (an image hosting site).

Our Flickr group address is: http://www.flickr.com/groups/640038@N20/ or you can search within Flickr for us as A Rocha Santa Barbara.

Don’t worry if you haven’t used Flickr, swing over to flickr.com and register for a free account.

Here is how to post photos to this group via the Flickr FAQ:
“How do I share a photo with a group?
Easy! If you’re a member of the group, add your photo to the group pool. (If not, join the group, because only group members can contribute to the group pool.)
The easiest way add a photo to a group is to go to the photo’s page and click the “Send to Group” button between the photo title and the photo. Then choose the group you want to send it to, and you’re done!”
Thanks for your involvement and we look forward to your photos

One of the greatest parts of being involved with A Rocha is getting a chance to meet some very amazing people that have some very amazing stories. Today we Marty and I met Philip who works in D.C. for SeaWatch. He was visiting his parents in LA and swung by with his dad to met us and talk about A Rocha. Philip has spent time in A Rocha Kenya, France, UK, and Canada. It was great to connect about conservation issues and hear a bit about his work helping promote a sustainable use of the ocean and the conserve species diversity. We look forward to connecting with you too - contact us if you are in the Santa Barbara area.

A Rocha and NieuCommunities invite churches and community organizations to a weekend of hands-on workshops about caring for creation.

read more | digg story

The Chiltern Gateway Project celebrated its 25th anniversary in Lewknor, UK. A Rocha UK works together with Natural England and the Chiltern Conservation Board to care for and share local natural treasures with the community as well as visitors.

read more | digg story

Last week Sandbach, UK’s A ROCHA group heard a ‘story of hope from Lebanon’, with Chris Naylor first setting out the background of the Middle East and Lebanon in particular.

He then described the remarkable success of the Lebanon project since it began 11 years ago with the aim of conserving the last remaining wetland in the country.

He explained the commitment to conservation which motivates the independent A ROCHA projects, now in 18 countries worldwide.

The speaker described the Aamiq marsh project set up by A ROCHA Lebanon in the Bekaa valley, and its significance to the huge number of birds that migrate to Europe.

He further explained how the project has contributed to a growing interest in the environment in this troubled region of the Middle East.

Conservation education has been promoted through building of strong links with local schools and organisations from across the community and from all religious backgrounds.

read more | digg story

Christian conservation organization A Rocha brings people of all religions together in saving the planet.

read more | digg story

We returned home from a long trip. Two of our weeks were spent at the A Rocha Canada center in Surrey, B.C. It was inspiring to see so much involvement in various aspects of the local community. My guess is that we will see many visitors in the next year as a result of our time there - especially during the winter months. Many thanks to those who made our stay wonderful! We look forward to implementing many of the projects and job roles that we saw so wonderfully and graciously modeled for us.