“The time has come,’ the Walrus said,
To talk of many things...
And why the sea is boiling hot —
And whether pigs have wings.”
Today, I find myself on the edge of a metaphorical cliff, the day is finally here.
And I must leap into this huge topic…
I must commit to planting seeds of change.
I must accept how the words move from my mind through my hands and land on this “page.”
This week we bring our attention to peace and connecting with the Earth.
I’ve put off diving into this next topic for so many reasons… in part, I’m not an expert. Yet, I continue to question why that should matter… I’m not a peace scholar either however I allow myself to write about peace. Perhaps it’s “easier” with peace?
And yet, I can no longer avoid this topic… expert or not. As John Henry Newman stated “nothing would get done if we waited until no one could find fault with it.
So, here, as the walrus said “we must talk of many things… and why the sea is boiling hot - and whether pigs have wings.”
Climate change, condition, crisis… whatever you wish to call it… aside from nuclear devastation this is the biggest threat to our existence…
yet sometimes it feels like we are still talking about “whether pigs have wings.” “Is climate change real?” “What is all the hype?” “It’s not really as bad as they say.” “Global warming has been happening since the beginning of time… this is just the normal pattern of the Earth.”
True… the Earth does warm up to incredible temperatures and then freeze over for extended periods of time. So, yes, this is a “normal” trend. Recall, what happened to the dinosaurs?
BUT… the rise in global temperatures in the past ~30-40 years has far exceeded any previous trend. Our current rise is a direct result of human activity… the result of a massive extraction of fossil fuels from the Earth to support our daily activities.
I share with you today, the most incredible way of visualizing this drastic change. I’ve talked about Emily and her team from The Tempestry Project before. I want to share a new project they began this past year…it’s truly outstanding.
Meet the New Normal Tempestry.
“New Normal” Tempestries are a visual representation of annual deviations-from-average temperature spanning 1895 – 2018, and were inspired by Professor Ed Hawkins’ Warming Stripes climate data visualization work. Emily and her team use data from NOAA with a baseline averaged from 1951-1980. The darker the blue the cooler than average, and the darker red the warmer than average. The trajectory is painfully obvious.
I was already aware of the rise in global temperature change prior to beginning a New Normal Tempestry…
And while I traveled this fall, at times with incredible guilt for the trans-Atlantic trips I’ve taken, I carried this piece with me. Stopping to knit a few rows in each place, contemplating how this shift impacts us, our future, our children’s future, our grandchildren…
1890’s to 1920’s. A forest in Oslo, Norway
I’ve been moved to tears multiple times while knitting this piece…
1890’s-1980’s. On a tree in Ames, IA
The reality is astounding….
1880’s - early 2000’s. St. Ninian’s Isle, Shetland, UK
I’ve yet to finish… The last 20 years of this piece are powerful and knitting those years, the years my children arrived on this Earth and the years of their childhood … yes, it’s emotional.
It’s a visualization of the reality and as Emily said “the trajectory is painfully obvious.”
Knitting a “new normal” tempestry should be required knitting for all.
I will finish mine after the New Year and send it to the Nobel Peace Center in Oslo, Norway for display. People are knitting these for politicians to hang in their office, to use as a talking point for those that might not be as convinced…
Hang them in schools, libraries, hospitals, etc. Place tags on the tempestry to signify key historical dates…
There’s power in knitting…
connecting with the Earth is a pivotal aspect of peace.
Please join me in knitting for peace and climate awareness…
as if your life depends on it…
because it does.
Daily peace tip #15
Visit The Tempestry Project website and peruse all the great information. Please consider knititng a new normal tempestry whether it’s for you, your family, your community, a politician that needs a talking point as they advocate for climate change, a politician that needs persuading, or a museum.
The process of knitting the new normal tempestry is a call to action.
All hands on deck… we have a serious problem.
Winner of give-away #2;
Beth Hansen. Thank you for being a “seed.” Beth wrote:
“I am part of a email group started December 1 to expand on this peace project. There are 16 or so of us, each taking a day or 2 to send a message of peace, share a quote or picture, whatever. We plan to continue to the 21st. But who knows perhaps we will continue on.”
Thank you Beth for being a seed. Please send me an email at thehealthyknitter at gmail dot com so that I can make arrangments to send you some Project Peace stitch markers.
Give-away #3
For the 3rd give-away, please leave a comment on any blog post from Day 15-19. The more posts, the greater the chance to win. This give-away was provided by my dear friend Susan, a woman I met in Cordova. I recall she asked me “now, tell me more about this knitting and peace thing you do?” We’ve been connected through knitting and peace ever since. Susan has graciously provided a skein of Hedgehog yarn in aran weight (Seed), a woolly sheep coaster, a pin and a few other fun items. I’ll add a peace sticker that Dotty from The Net Loft sent me. All you have to do is respond to the following…
Share a way that you currently are or might consider in the near future a way to teach peace. How can you connect with others to cultivate peace?
The 4th and final give-away
On December 20, the 2nd to last day of Project Peace 2019, I’ll ask a final question. I’ll once again, put together a gift from my stash.
Start planning now…
For the past 3 years, we’ve been celebrating World wide knit for peace day on December 21. It’s a day to intentionally focus on peace through knitting. Consider knitting in solitude or in public, with a group or not. So many options. All that’s needed is a chance to stop, knit, think or chat about peace. Make space for peace… especially on December 21.