Rachel Rocks!
Whenever the calendar turns to May 27, send a grateful hooray to celebrate the birth in 1907 of Rachel Carson.
Rest In Power, Rachel!
I’ll be doing that this May. Rachel has long been a shero to me. I’m far from alone—anybody who knows of the “Mother of the Modern Environmental Movement” admires this quiet writer with a powerful impact.
Her book, Silent Spring, galvanized a momentum to stop pesticides such as DDT and other poisons that killed now-silenced birds and jeopardized the health of all creatures, including humans. Silent Spring led to huge environmental activism in the 1960s and beyond, such as massive annual Earth Days. Her work helped spawn new federal and state agencies that aim to keep our water, air, and land clean and life-sustaining.
Check out this honest and thoughtful paean to Rachel’s impact—and the vehement resistance to it by chemical corporations and prominent national organizations such as the American Chemical Society—from the American Chemical Society!
Join awesome museum activities now.
Rachel wrote her books right here in my new Maryland neighborhood, including three moving and fascinating books about the importance of nature and the life of the seas. That’s why I am thrilled that a museum dedicated to her work, Springsong, is already engaging the community with cool events and will open in 2028.
I’ve loved what we’ve done at a few of their events, which range from walks along streams where Rachel walked to hands-on looks at stream critters that intrigue kids. If you live anywhere in the DC area, learn all about events and Rachel and the museum here. And Rachel-lovers anywhere can support the splendid Rachel museum soon to be here.
My brother Ed and me
I know firsthand the effects of DDT, because I grew up on a Colorado wheat farm at a time when industry and government were forcefully pushing farmers to use DDT and other pesticides. “Cropduster” planes would unleash curtains of DDT, aldrin, dieldrin, and heptachlor in the fields around us. It was hard to avoid using what was promised as a miracle remedy from insects and invasive weeds that could wipe out a family’s crops, despite the misgivings of many farmers.
One of my brothers was even a “flag boy” for a local cropduster, standing in the fields holding a flag to guide the plane to its next round of spray as they worked their way across a field. I’m pleased for Ed that he lived a good life and got the success that came from his hard work. No one can prove his cancer was due to that chemical inundation, but it had to be a potent factor in his death that took him away from his kids and all our family six years ago.
As any of you who enjoys nature knows, the fight to keep our Earth healthy for us and our children is in need of everyday warriors now. Huge cuts to environmental agencies and programs are causing harm to us all. Join in however you can to fight back!