Puzzles, Part 1: Reparations

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withdrawn ​is that we do not want to pay our fare share of climate expenses.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