Steamed Mussels, Guacamole, and Denial

A climate recipe for disaster.

Elizabeth Grey
5 min readJul 11, 2021
Image courtesy of Pixabay.

I might be a witness to our extinction. It seems important to mark the day I realize that.

It’s embarrassing to admit global warming snuck up on me. I know better. But like many Americans luxuriating in the drivel of our everyday lives, I pay scant attention to what’s happening.

I don’t deny that a climate catastrophe is in the making. I understand the emergency. I know something must be done.

I cheer Greta Thunberg. I recycle. I walk instead of driving when I can. I have a water bottle and try to remember to fill it instead of buying plastic ones.

I take global warming more seriously some days than others. Something we don’t hear enough about is the cause Syrian Civil War. There is a great deal of evidence to support that a drought was its catalyst. People in the countryside migrated to cities for water, eventually causing the uprising against al-Assad.

I remember how keenly I felt over the dearth of press about it. Then I forgot.

When it comes to our climate catastrophe, I do just enough to assuage feelings of guilt over it. The rest of my actions are driven by convenience.

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