VOICES OF CONGREGANTS

Jane Larkin II

Jane Larkin shared these reflections with our congregation at the 2009 Yom Kippur Afternoon service.

The 1970s was the birth of the modern environmental movement. Environmental issues touted by early 60’s activists began to gain mainstream acceptance. Images transmitted from the moon in 1969 showed Earth as an integrated system helping to shape public willingness to preserve nature. Earth Day was first celebrated on April 22, 1970, and a year later on it’s second anniversary, the group Keep America Beautiful launched the famous “Crying Indian” public service campaign with the theme “People start pollution, People can stop it.” The commercial inspired a fledgling environmental movement and me, a young girl in New Jersey, to care deeply about our planet.

As a child, I took Keep America Beautiful’s message seriously. When I went to the shore I would pick up garbage on the beach. As a counselor on a teen tour after college, I was keenly aware of the beauty of the national parks we visited and looked over our campgrounds carefully before leaving, often making the kids pick up trash two and three times.

My family told me that I was an idealist; my campers teased me in their end of summer skit. But, I continued to believe one person could make a difference – even a small one. While I didn’t make the connection to Jewish ideals then, I realize now that I was practicing Tikkun Olam.

My desire for pollution free beaches and parks progressed to a set of beliefs that guide the choices I make today and the values we are teaching our son.

I believe that no matter your political persuasion, we all want clean air and water, a healthy food system, and beautiful landscapes. So at home we have an organic vegetable garden, compost, use a rain gauge so we can conserve water, recycle and use green cleaning products.

I believe that the environment is interconnected with our health and economy. We choose to use toiletries free of chemicals, and support companies that use sustainable farming or manufacturing practices and that make healthier products such as BPA-free plastics.

I believe that it’s easy to turn away and hope that someone else cleans up the mess. So we teach our son to care for the world through our words and our actions. In our neighborhood we do garbage clean-ups. We give to organizations such as the Jewish National Fund to support their environmental projects in Israel. This allows me to match my desire to improve the environment with my love of the Jewish state.

Beyond connecting me to Israel, my environmental endeavors enable me to practice Tikkun Olam in a very tangible way. As I tell my son, “caring for the earth is literally repairing our world.” While it took me until adulthood to make the connection to Judaism, I work now to emphasize to my son how our earth-friendly efforts are integrated with our faith.

As I reflect on my actions during this Yom Kippur, I realize my efforts to create a cleaner planet are small and imperfect. But, waiting to act until I can proclaim a zero carbon footprint is unrealistic. Rather than striving for perfection, I just continue to try to do more.

On Torah
Jane Larkin II