 Boxing Day. December 26th. Celebrated in the UK. For most people it means a day to hang out with family, eat leftovers and enjoy gifts given and received. But historically, it was also a day to give "Christmas Boxes" to the servants, who would go home and celebrate Christmas with their own families after having cared for you on the 25th.  Or, perhaps the term 'Boxing Day' comes from the nautical tradition whereby great sailing ships carried a sealed box of money for good luck which, upon return, would be given to a priest who would distribute the money to those in need on the day after Christmas.  Here in New England, we get back to work - - there is no "Bank Holiday" for us. But over the past decade, I have created my own "Boxing Day" tradition.
Photographs that are labels on Christmas Day, or beautiful holiday cards become decorations on a box the next. And all that wrapping paper gets a longer life, glued to a sneaker box or packing box and used year after year.
It started with a desire to save paper and reduce holiday waste. But over time, it became something more - - A kind of compulsion to fix what I had using materials at hand - not just cards and paper, but fabric as well.
One year, I redid our recycling container. The next, I created boxes to use for grocery shopping. They were so admired at our food co-op, I made some as gifts for the clerks. Apparently one of the boxes is now the bed for a very happy cat.
What makes me happiest, is that my son and daughter love to find their custom gift boxes under the tree. No need for labels. And certainly no need for new wrapping paper. It's become a tradition - -  Our very own Boxing Day. To me, that's what makes our current time so inspiring. There are opportunities for the creative re-making of the world as we know it. As I discovered with a bunch of cards, paper and fabric, beauty is everywhere. What might you create or discover this last week of 2018? 
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 I don't know about you, but I love the clarity and focus of a puzzle. I start with the edges and move on to specific colors or scenes.  Sometimes I have to change my perspective or walk away and come back later. It's amazing how even then, it can be hard to see what is sitting right in front of you.  Like these gaps. I spent hours looking...I sorted the pieces by shape and color and still had no luck. Then my husband showed up and in less than two minutes, these three holes were filled.  At first, I was mad. How dare he come along and make it look so easy?  And then, I remember. That's what makes a second opinion or a second set of eyes so valuable. New perspectives make something seemingly difficult appear simple and self-evident. How cool is that?  So in my last post I talked about Reparations and Carbon Offsets and how excited I am to share my family's offsets with our local Advance Transit.  It was easy to go online and set up sustaining monthly donations. We've amortized what we owe, so we'll pay off our travel debt over time, while also supporting an invaluable local resource.  When I think about climate action, I realize it's all about sharing - not just the financial resources we may have, but also our time, ideas and points of view. It turns out that collaboration is critical, but so is having a plan, like strategies for a jig-saw puzzle, or methods for paying carbon debts we didn't even realize we had.  Will Moses, Butternut Bend 24 x 30 www.willmoses.com I may be an artist,
but I am also a planner and, rumor has it, a motivating teacher. So I've created an online 'class' that inspires people to dive deep, take control, and find joy as they participate in guided action throughout 2019. Stay tuned... If you are looking for a climate action plan, I've got one for you. Reparations: the making of amends for a wrong one has done, by paying money to or otherwise helping those who have been wronged.  Eiffel Tower at Night, 2012 It's been three years since the Paris Climate Accord. Apparently one of the reasons the Unites States has withdrawn is that we do not want to pay our fare share of climate expenses.
It really is a puzzle. There are all these messy pieces, but the parameters are clear. We have to transition away from carbon-based fuels as quickly as possible. And as the recent National Climate Assessment Report suggests, we don't have much time. The warnings have been loud and clear this year, with enormous fires and storms. But our leaders ignore the signs...  My left ankle, taped I get it. I'm now doing physical therapy for injuries I received during the summer, but ignored. It was just too inconvenient. But, if I had acknowledged the irregular pains, and if I had actually rested it right away, my ankle might have healed a lot faster. Does this sound familiar? Let's just ignore the problem. It might go away...  Playa Del Carmen, Mexico 2016 I don't know about you, but I display this kind of behavior all the time. In my head, I know one thing. In my heart I know another thing. And then I act as if none of those understandings or feelings existed!  Playa Del Carmen, Mexico 2016 On a trip to Mexico a few years ago, we had a beachside room that was not very romantic - - Each day, the tide came higher and higher and each night I woke to the sound of waves crashing beneath me. It was frightening. I vowed to never travel again. I did not want to be part of the problem...But guess who's going to Mexico with her extended family this year? It was just too good to pass up...  Lyn's Lifetime Air Travel Record What about the climate? Yes, but what about my extended family? It's a choice many of us make all the time, especially around holidays. Instead of feeling overwhelmed, like when I first see all those puzzle pieces in a pile on the table, I took action by gathering data. I may be an artist, but I value real information. The facts. So I investigated the climate impact of my traveling. Here's what I discovered: When combining all trips I have taken alone and with my family, beginning with my first international trip to Ireland & England, in 1974, I have traveled 208,674 miles on 105 different trips. That's the same distance as flying eight times around the equator. Total Carbon impact: 141.26 tons.  Lyn in London, 1974 What's a gal to do? Cross her arms, plant her feet, and say "so what?" Or, perhaps, get on with it and take responsibility? I'm tired of ignoring warning signs and not taking action, so I went online and learned that 'all' I need to do was pay $4,146 to offset the carbon impact of my family's adventures. (www.myclimate.org).  Florida sunrise, 2007 A carbon offset: a reduction in emissions of carbon dioxide or greenhouse gases made in order to compensate for or to offset an emission made elsewhere.  Textiles in Ecuador, 2011 I had been petrified to learn what we might owe for our family's amazing adventures and it was that fear that had kept me from exploring offsets sooner. But here I am, still icing my ankle and feeling rather stupid. If we had paid offsets as we went we would not have this debt for which we had not budgeted. I wonder if our leaders feel stupid too...  Railway station in Germany, 2012 Sometimes, as hard as it may be, we have to admit our mistakes and pay our fare share for the privileges we have. Given the National Climate Assessment's re-evaluation of our current climate circumstances, it seems appropriate that we pay the carbon debt we owe as quickly as possible. It's just the right thing to do. Thank you, President George H.W. Bush. Country (and planet) before self. Next week, in part 2, I'll talk about how.  In my sister's car somewhere in Montana, 2015 |
Evelyn R. Swett
reframing the narrative, one image at a time 
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Evelyn R Swett Photography
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