I realize my reflection of the past, current and future state of the environment paints a grim and pessimistic picture, but I feel optimistic in our ability to turn planet Earth’s fate around if we all work together and commit to making a change.

We wondered about how we might be able to eliminate plastics from our day to day routines, and recycled literally everything. We were amazing, you should have seen us. Now and again though, we wondered if these were the right questions.

I want you to hear the whispers of the seasons changing. The rustling of leaves as they gracefully cascade down from their limbs in the fall, birds singing in spring, and frogs that serenade the summer night.

Rather than exploit it, destroy it, poison it, why don’t we just enhance the beauty of it, guard it, and love it?

Be assured that in the upcoming election, I will cast my vote for your future – for elected officials that recognize climate risks and are willing to promote and vote for legislation that will stop environmental damage and begin to heal our planet.

I pledge to you now that I will work tirelessly and with all my willpower so you don’t have to live in a world where you have to worry about the next storm.

I want you to feel awestruck like I do. It is important to feel small sometimes, to feel the weight of reality, to recognize the scale of a challenge, to see where you fit and what you are up against. This is the case with climate change.

You should’ve reduced your carbon footprint, should be using some source of renewable energy and be a vegetarian by now.