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Picture this: I spent my formative years in the heart of southern Ontario, an area I love.
Everything was great, except for one undesirable guest—smog.
Yup, the air pollution that comes from the rapid march of progress, largely fuelled by steel mills churning out the magic behind car-making. Now there’s irony…
Fast forward to when I packed my bags and embarked on a journey that took me all the way to the Northwest Territories and then British Columbia as a sprightly young man.
The first thing that hit me? The sheer delight of breathing air that wasn’t laced with smog. It was like inhaling freedom itself.
For decades, I basked in the glorious bubble of a smog-free existence.
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And… shhhh… I’ll admit, I wore my “clean-air” badge with a touch of inner arrogance. Well, maybe more than a touch—okay, it was smugness.
But hey, we don’t talk about that openly, because in polite society, we label that kind of talk as bragging. And braggarts? Ugh, don’t get me started. It’s just another shade of my own smugness!
But then, a twist in the plot—cue the steamy summer twenty years back. A raging bully of a forest fire, an uncommon occurrence in my neck of the woods, suddenly burst onto the scene. It was like nature decided to go rogue, sending flames licking hungrily at our tranquil valley.
That was the first jolt, the harbinger of what lay ahead.
Flash forward two decades, and here I am. Forest fire central. Smoky vistas and flames in all directions. Homes lost. Habitat destroyed. Bambi on the run from the barbecue’s insistent blaze.
Guess what? Not only have I relinquished my smug crown, but I’ve been unceremoniously thrust back into the realm of smog, except it’s a whole lot worse now. Oh, how the tables turn!
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And sure, you might detect a hint of irony in me admitting to my past smugness. But, and this is a big “but,” hold your own smirks. Because what I’m about to say is like a thunderbolt in a clear sky—what I’m going through, or have gone through, is basically a preview, a teaser trailer for the main event.
Ladies and gentlemen, brace yourselves, because global warming and climate change are real? Yeah, they’re not buzzwords from sci-fi novels or fodder for alt-right websites to debunk. No, they’re the real megillah, despite what the online skeptics try to peddle.
See, it’s not just about me anymore. It’s about all of us. It’s about you, me, and that guy down the street who still insists on driving his F350 to his office job downtown. Climate change isn’t some abstract concept that happens “over there.” It’s here, right in our faces, infiltrating our lives, one smoggy city and town at a time.
The show I’m living now? It’s the opening act. The real headliner is waiting in the wings, ready to shake our world.
So, let’s have a heart-to-heart. I’m not here to preach, just to nudge you awake. Know that I’m talking to myself as much as I’m talking to you.
Climate change isn’t waiting for an invitation—it’s crashing the party, uninvited. It’s not about being right-wing or left-wing. It’s about acknowledging that our planet is changing – whether we like it or not – and we’re the ones driving that change.
So, when you’re sipping your morning coffee or scrolling through the news, remember this: my story is your coming attractions reel. You might think you’re safe in your bubble, but that bubble? It’s bursting, and there’s no undoing the plot.
And as for those alt-right websites? Well, let them scream into the void. The facts are the facts, and the climate doesn’t care about our political leanings. It’s just doing its thing, while we dance to a tune that’s far from music to our ears.
In the end, it’s not about being smug or being humbled.
It’s about being awake, aware, and ready to embrace change, not always the pleasant kind. Because trust me, change is here, and it’s not waiting for a round of applause.
It’s waiting for us to act. What are you willing and ready to change?