Animal Tracks

After a good rain I pay special attention to the animal tracks that I find on my walk. Typically these include raccoon (like the one I photographed above), deer, and coyote. There are others that I am not sure about. What is certain is that after a windy day or after the next rain these tracks will be washed away. No one will be any wiser to the presence of these animals. The habitat is little disturbed.
That can hardly be said for human beings. Our landfills are packed with garbage that will not decompose for centuries or ever. The tracks we are leaving seem all too permanent and the environment is contracting in the throes of death.
The problem is complex and expensive to solve. We try to conserve as much as can our five acres. We recycle, think about the number of necessary automobile excursions, and rely on our air conditioner as little as possible in the summer. We are planning on new energy efficient windows. When we replace our roof we will use white shingles. I have the idea that a windmill would be a good - green and clean - source of electricity. Those three ideas together will cost us between $25,000 and $30,000. But if we do not do them we will pay in other ways such as higher electricity and propane bills. The ecosystem will be further depleted.
Eventually we will do these things in an effort to reduce our footprints on the earth. I think this is a walk that we all have to take together or there will be no place to walk at all.
On this day the church remembers Joseph of Arimethea, compassionate friend of Jesus, 2009