Category: Nature

Happy Winter Solstice!

It’s officially winter today, and I hope everyone has a happy, warm, and enchanted winter holiday season! The winter solstice, also referred to as “midwinter” and “the longest night,” is the day of the year with the least amount of sunlight and the longest night for those on the Northern Hemisphere. Astronomically, it marks the …

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Artist Spotlight: Charley Harper

Today’s artist spotlight is on the American Modern artist, Charley Harper. He was born on the family farm in Frenchton, West Virginia, on August 4, 1922. Growing up, he not only had the farm to explore, but also the Appalachian hills, where he spent time wandering the land and observing the wildlife. This upbringing suited …

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Get Outside This Summer With a Trip to a National Park

The National Parks offer some of the greatest opportunities in the United States to experience the extremes in raw terrain, flora, and fauna, that the country has to offer. There are 60 national parks spanning 28 states, from the volcanoes of Hawaii to the seaside mountains of Maine and the glaciers of Alaska. Take the …

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Homegrown First Aid – Aloe Vera

No matter how careful you are, accidents and incidents and other events requiring some level of medical attention happen. There are aisles and aisles in the drug store hawking products to treat, cure, soothe, and anesthetize everyday injuries and illnesses such as cuts, insect bites, sunburn, sore throat, and acne. Some of these products are …

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International Day of the Tropics

Our planet’s lush tropics cover 40% of the land, and account for approximately 80% of Earth’s biodiversity, yet it is under constant threat from human activity and climate change. Today is International Day of the Tropics, which was created as a reminder to appreciate and respect our rich, tropical lands. Here is a poem by …

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Astrid Cabral’s Love of Her Home, The Amazon

This World Rainforest Day I am celebrating novelist, poet, environmentalist, diplomat, and mother of five, Astrid Cabral, who sings the songs of her Amazon home in her exemplary poetry. Some of Cabral’s most well-known books include Through Water (2003), Anteroom (2007), and Cage (2008). In Cage, Cabral explores the real and symbolic animals of the Amazon. She …

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Happy World Oceans Day!

June 8th is World Oceans Day, a day to appreciate and respect our life-giving oceans. We are at a crucial point with our oceans and action must be taken now to reverse the devastating effects of overfishing, pollution, and climate change, with half of the coral reefs now destroyed and 90% of big fish populations …

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Global WarNing

June 5th marks World Environment Day. Are you sick of hearing about the environment? Do you roll your eyes every time someone declares that we humans are fouling the air we breathe, the water we drink and the food we eat? Do you rate Al Gore’s documentary, “An Inconvenient Truth” an alarmist film to appease …

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Happy World Turtle Day!

Happy #WorldTurtleDay! As I mentioned in my recent endangered species post, the Hawksbill Turtle is on the critically endangered list, and turtles everywhere are threatened by plastic and other unwanted debris in the ocean every day.  A few ways you can help show your love for these beautiful creatures is by using less plastic, recycling …

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International Day for Biological Diversity: Biodiversity and Ecosystems

May 22nd is the International Day for Biological Diversity, a time to reflect on the importance of different species around the globe that are threatened by human activities. Here are thoughts on preserving our biodiversity (which comes from the term “biological diversity”) and ecosystems. Our global ecosystem is home to earth’s entire collection of living …

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