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Dunwoody reporter.
December 02, 2024
Image 18
Dunwoody reporter., December 02, 2024, Image 18
About Dunwoody reporter. (Sandy Springs, GA) 20??-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 2, 2024)
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Newspaper Page Text
SUSTAINABILITY
UUTH
A
y
y
0
4
2025 '
ATLANTA
JEWISH
FILM
FESTIVAL
\
IN THEATERS
FEB. 19 - MAR. 6
STREAMING
MAR. 7-16
AJFF.ORG
AJC
American
Jewish
Committee
Founder & Partner
Finding reserves of
strength in difficult
times
Those who
contemplate the
beauty of the earth
find reserves of
strength that will
endure as long
as life lasts...
There is something
infinitely healing
in the repeated refrains of nature—the
assurance that dawn comes afier night, and
spring afier the winter. — Rachel Carson
On the first Wednesday in November,
I went to the river. The political news of
that morning had knocked the breath
from my body and sent tears down my
face—visceral responses to the outcome
of the most caustic and consequential
presidential election in my lifetime.
The election result wasn’t a total
surprise to me, even though I had hoped
for a different outcome. A near majority
of Americans had loudly expressed
unhappiness with the status quo and
demanded a major shift in our country’s
leadership toward a more partisan,
authoritarian style of government. In
history, change is the motivation for
most political outcomes. What worries
me—actually frightens me—is the steady
decay of the truth in recent years. It
has poisoned efforts to find common
ground and solve problems, most
consequentially the climate crisis. This
aversion to the truth—to facts, data,
and science—has amplified divisiveness
among family, friends, and neighbors;
there is no end is in sight.
I believe that policy decisions
affecting our families and communities
should be based on the truth, and on
honesty, fairness, kindness, and justice
for all. These are the values I was taught
as a child and that I have taught my
sons. The anticipated shifts in federal
governance appear poised to harm
millions of people, especially those less
fortunate—as well as the air, land, and
water upon which we all depend.
Refrains of nature
I have walked the same trail in
Atlanta’s “backyard” national park—
the Chattahoochee River National
Recreation Area—for more than five
years. During one of those years,
I walked through the woods along
Cabin Creek to its confluence with the
river nearly every week, finding awe
everywhere I looked, especially as the
seasons changed. My journal notes from
those visits spawned the idea for my
book, “Keeping the Chattahoochee.”
On my post-election walk, the
weather was warm, ten degrees above the
“normal” average for a November day in
Atlanta. Trekking pole in hand, I headed
downhill toward the river, hoping to
ABOVETHE
WATERLINE
Sally Bethea
18 | DECEMBER 2024
ROUGHDRAFTATLANTA.COM
