Earth Hour 2009 – Prequel
I have been seeing information about Earth Hour 2009 at work today in both expected and unexpected places. When I saw it on Google, I must confess I disregarded following the link. When I also saw the link on Ingram, our book jobber for the library where I work, I finally decided to find out more about it. Just in time for participating too! I visited the U.S. part of the organization’s website, Earthourus.org to sign up as a participant.
Tonight from 8:30 to 9:30 pm individuals and businesses are turning off the lights for one hour to offer a symbolic statement of unity in favor of energy conservation and climate change awareness. It is sponsored mainly by the World Wildlife Fund and started three years ago in Sydney, Australia before it expanded to a global scale.
It is a worldwide effort which will be observed at 8:30 p.m. local time in whatever part of the world is that time of the night. Since it is so soon after the March Equinox, the thinking is that it will be dark at 8:30 p.m. pretty much anywhere around the world.
Famous buildings and landmarks around the U.S. will take part by not having lights illuminating them for that one hour. Manhattan landmarks will probably be some of the most dramatic – Rockefeller Center and the Empire State Building are going dark along with the lights on some of the famous bridges. I looked up what would be happening in Rhode Island and they asked the main tall building – One Financial Plaza (formerly Hospital Trust) – to turn off the lights it usually always leaves on across the top of the building.
Earth Hour – In Progress Right Now
Since the effort is symbolic and not an intentional absolute blackout, they are advocating turning off overhead lights and lamps around your house but say it is ok to keep television and computers on. Therefore, I am blogging in the dark by candlelight right this minute. I have groupings of small candles lit near the couch where I am sitting and on the counters in the kitchen. This is fun!
What strikes me the most is how quiet it seems right now. The second most noticeable thing is how much light the candles give off so that I do not feel absolutely in darkness.
I looked out the windows to see if my neighbors seem to also be doing it and I must confess most of the house windows are well-lit. But I can know that I am joined by perhaps millions of other people around the world. This kind of common effort is very inspiring. I just stopped in at the Earth Hour website with its live update and the photos of cities around the world are awesome.
What a great idea! It inspires me to share some of Sri Chinmoy’s aphorisms and poetry with the imagery of candles:
My heart’s candlelight
And my life’s hope-flames
Are going to show me the way
As I walk along
Eternity’s God-Vision-Road.
-Sri ChinmoyHow beautiful to look at
When my prayer
Lights a candle of hope
In my heart.
-Sri Chinmoy