Not a Celebration, But a Funeral
You may know his name and appearance from “Star Trek.” He has written Boldly Go and is also the oldest person to have ever left earth in a space capsule. He is 91-year-old William Shatner, who in 2021 came back to earth with a message that left me very sad!
He, too, expressed great sadness when he said: “I came out of the spaceship, overwhelmed by a feeling, and started to weep. I didn’t know why I was crying. It took me a couple of hours, alone, to figure out what was happening to me. Then I realized I was in grief for this beautiful world that I could see more clearly from up in space…this planet that took five billion years to evolve into what it is now with all the multitudes of things that we humans can love and be aware of that are so beautiful…and to know that we are destroying it…I hope I never recover from it.” That was his overwhelming feeling of, “Oh my God, what are we doing to this tiny rock?”
Indeed, do we all need to weep at the ways we humans are taking our Mother Earth for granted?
Shatner mentioned that his areal adventure gave him a deeper appreciation of life and all its blessings. It made him more concerned about how the planet and its gifts are being taken for granted. He used the metaphor of experiencing—not a celebration, as he had expected—but a funeral!
Have you/we been among those who cry out to the people: “Are you aware of what we are doing?” When was the last time you celebrated your connections with Mother Earth and worked positively to protect her, knowing that she continues to give LIFE to us even as we condemn her to DEATH?
Renée Domeier, OSB
Photo: Autumn leaves, taken by Amanda Hackett