“When despair for the world grows in me and I wake in the night at the least sound in fear of what my life and my children’s lives may be, I go and lie down where the wood drake rests in the beauty of the water, and the great heron feeds.”
That is the introduction to a poem called, ‘The Piece of Wild Things’, written by 87-year-old American writer Wendell Berry. His writings stress the urgency for mankind to live in harmony with the earth or pay the price.
It reminds me of my own connectedness to nature, in times of joy and in times of sorrow. I’m not alone. Our love of nature is universal. It binds and connects us to one another.
The weather events of the last few weeks have not waived my solace in nature, but rather it’s unhinged me. It’s tested my faith that I could rely on the rhythms of nature through the seasons and through the years.
We’ve seen death and destruction, lost livelihoods and suffering animals after four atmospheric rivers from the Pacific Ocean slammed into us. Days and days of relentless rain and wind have unsettled our little slice of heaven on the west coast of Canada.
Here in South Delta, I feel like we have dodged a bullet. I looked at the fractured dike on the Sumas Prairie knowing that could easily be one of our dikes. This is a wake-up call, and a call to action as individuals and as a community.
My husband and I discussed what would we do if we knew a king tide in Boundary Bay would flood our home. First we would move our valuables to the second floor and batten down the hatches.
In a worse-case scenario what would we grab if we had only minutes to flee our home?
The dog comes first, followed by my wallet and cell phone. I might not have time for toiletries or a change of clothes.
Six months ago I would not have thought about such things. Climate change was in the future, and not effecting my daily life. The COVID-19 pandemic has been front of mind and a constant worry. We are already on overload.
After the heat dome, forest fires and now floods, I’ve woken up to what may become our new normal. Hotter summers, wetter winters and extreme wind storms.
We will adapt, but only if we heed the words of Wendell Berry and find harmony with nature.
Ingrid Abbott is a freelance writer who is considering building an ark.
