Thinking Globally

April 2020

 As Earth Day and Arbor Day are approaching, and recent events
surrounding the pandemic have affected the world, we asked our
writers to write about the importance of thinking globally.

Spring into action

Emmy Jansen
Class of 2023

We live in strange times. When we all thought of how the new decade would go for us, I don’t think any of us pictured a pandemic that has impacted our daily lives in some way or another. Whether we’re students doing classes from home or fast food workers who are only serving customers through the drive thru, everyone is feeling the effects of this virus. As we continue through these weeks, we wonder if they will turn into months or even years.

I think we’re lucky that this is happening to us during the start of spring instead of the dead of winter. Being kicked out of my dorm and sent back home wasn’t how I wanted my semester to go, but I’m loving the sun and warmth of Richmond over what had been a cold mountain range in Maryland. We are being told not to eat out or do any leisure activities that involve large crowds, like malls or the movies. Some of us are taking this opportunity to catch up on Netflix or do housework. But as I write this, there are dozens of people walking by my bedroom window soaking up the sun that we haven’t really seen since the fall. These days of quarantine might have taken away some things in our lives that we took for granted. But it’s also giving us the opportunity to appreciate what we never truly did before: our planet.

Because the news has been inundated with the virus, we haven’t heard as much talk about climate change recently. Before, we used to hear about it all the time and I think a lot of us got tired of hearing about the state of our planet and we stopped believing that it was a real problem. My hope is that this break from that segment of news may cleanse our mental palette and allow us to understand the scope of the issue more when all this blows over. I was recently told that China was seeing clear skies because all of the people had been quarantined and no one was in the factories working. While I have no evidence to back up this claim, the idea was shocking. Because of the virus, jobs like factory work are probably seeing some sort of slow, whether because workers have been sent home or people aren’t purchasing goods like they used to. But when we think about it, maybe the solution to climate change is really that simple. While it isn’t just the small day to day changes, we can each make and we need more drastic measures, we can each do our part to protect the longevity of our planet.

This virus couldn’t have happened at a better time for us, I think. To escape from being cooped up in our houses, we’re all enjoying Mother Nature like we always should’ve been. We’re putting down the electronics and looking around us and are thankful for what we see. For those of us that see more danger in the virus than others, life has been given a new meaning. It takes times like these for us to truly remember what it means to have a life to live. We remember how fragile humanity is and how we need to protect the sanctity of life. We never know when it is going to end and we should be ready at any moment, not just when a pandemic spreads across the world.

As we head towards Earth Day and Arbor Day, we should reflect on these times, regardless of if they’ve ended. This virus should’ve awakened us to the joys of life and the importance of the world around us. Unlike many global disasters like wildfires or floods, this event has touched every single person on the planet. This is one of the first truly shared human experiences. This pandemic is non-discriminatory and each of us are feeling its impacts, albeit some more than others. While this thought may fill us with fear, it should also fill us with a sense of comfort. We are not alone. In times of globalization, we are more connected now than we ever have been. However, we often feel more alone. Rates of suicide and depression are higher than they were decades ago, even though it is so much easier now to find someone to talk to. Perhaps a silver lining of this whole situation is that we realize how surrounded by people we are. With advanced technology and a growing global population, there is no reason why we should ever feel alone.

It shouldn’t have to come down to times like these to shock us into action, but this has been common in our history. After World War Two, we had a greater understanding of life and the joys of the privilege we see in our country. 9/11 taught us to look around at our country and be thankful we live here and can partake in her spirit. I hope COVID-19 opens our eyes to the global community and how it can be used as a moral good instead of a modern evil. We should come away with a new appreciation for the world around us, the planet we’re on and the people on it with us. Our future might look bleak as we push through this virus, but it also looks incredibly bright once we get past this.

The weather is in the mid-80s. The sun is shining and there is a gentle breeze blowing through the trees. If you didn’t know it, it wouldn’t seem like the planet was going through a pandemic. It’s the start of spring, where the trees are budding, and things are all in the process of starting over. The humans on this planet might be going through a pandemic, but the Earth itself is not. She is as strong and bright as ever. As we each learn to appreciate the things we’ve always taken for granted, life should be at the top of that list. And our life is made complete by the existence of nature and our home on Planet Earth. Earth Day and Arbor Day are just a reminder to do what we should’ve always been doing: loving our planet and keeping it strong for generations to come.

Read other articles by Emmy Jansen

The order of nature

Harry Scherer
Class of 2022

Things are different now. Can you sense it? A virus is attacking our nation and we have been called to battle, willingly or not. We, the height of God’s creation, are being mocked as a non-thinking and non-feeling biological weapon attacks us. Our intelligence is being insulted as we desperately search to find a match for a virus that does not even know the damage that it is causing; it is simply existing. We wait with bated breath for the newest developments in a constantly emerging pandemic without realizing that this sometimes-vain search for knowledge and social isolation has already made us victims of the infection, just those of a much smaller degree.

These realities are all occurring as we remain distant from our non-immediate family, friends and workmates, forcing us to look ourselves in the mirror. Overnight, we were forced to begin a quasi-monastic lifestyle with no estimated time of completion. During this time especially, there are many persons who are suffering from the plague that is racking our nation and our world.

The first obvious subjects of my thoughts are the physical victims of the novel coronavirus. For them, the potential has become a reality. They live with the often experienced yet often overlooked suffering of the unknown. As they watch the global death toll slowly rise higher, they wonder if their mortality will become a medical statistic.

The second subjects are their families. With a growing fear of contracting the virus, they patiently wait to see how their loved one can physically and emotionally respond to the infectious enemy that approaches and defeats in silence.

The third subjects are the medical professionals who have spent their entire careers wondering if a time will come when the entire world will be looking to them to provide an answer. In a time of pandemic, this world can often devolve into one of impatience, restlessness and selfishness. In order to fight against this growing anxiety, they feel that it is their responsibility to calm everyone to patience, peace and selflessness.

The fourth subjects are those business owners who rely on their own tireless efforts to provide for their families. The pandemic is not in the hypothetical for these persons who devote their whole selves to endeavors that form communities and aid to the common good.

The fifth subjects are those students, especially seniors in college and high school, who anticipated two short months with their friends before the summer break or plunge into the deep. For some, this means leaving a place that reminds them every day of the person they could and should be and returning to a place that only brings heartache.

The sixth subjects are those elderly persons who see nothing unique about the isolation and loneliness that many are experiencing because of quarantine mandates. For these persons, waking up and falling asleep alone is the norm and they suddenly are seeing many in their communities share their everyday reality.

The seventh subjects are those who do not fit into any of the preceding categories. These are the persons who have yet to recognize the severity of the infection and the lasting impact that it and our response will have on this and future generations. These could also be those who recognize the impact but still have to suffer along with the rest of those in their communities because of the previously mentioned and daunting unknown.

For the sake of clarity, I believe that much of the anxiety and fear surrounding this virus find their foundation in the modern notion that our technology and political leaders can solve the world’s perennial problems. As is being proven right now in this pandemic, we know that these prior assumptions are not the case.

Instead, those who are suffering from the virus and its effects are being pulled quickly into recognizing deeper metaphysical and epistemological truths. In a culture of radical individualism like our own, we are being forced to see that our lives are not our own and that our own plans sometimes take a back seat to the good of our neighbor. Put simply, we are being called back to nature, and, one a deeper level, we are being called back to God.

We should consider why it is significant that we are being called back to nature. This is the time that we, and many cultures around the world, celebrate Earth and Arbor Days. When done correctly, these days are supposed to remind individuals of both the glory of the gift of God’s creation and the immense responsibility that we have in preserving and caring for this creation, that is, in properly receiving the gift. We recognize the beauty of nature because we see that it bears an intentional order. The source of this pandemic especially reminds us of the importance in cooperating with the order of creation. With regard to this novel coronavirus, there was a twofold responsibility that was neglected in the spread of the infection. First, the organization of notoriously unhygienic wet markets in Wuhan served as a breeding ground for the spread of the virus from the infected animals to the populated groups of consumers. When animals are butchered and sold on site in the midst of persons, nature will take its course and the virus will spread. The second overlooked responsibility was on the Chinese Communist Party. A study published on the 11th of March out of the University of Southampton found that the spread of the virus could have been curtailed by 95% if Chinese officials would have acted three weeks earlier, 86% two weeks earlier and 66% one week earlier. The global spread of the virus is proof of what occurs when we do not recognize the order of nature.

In this time of social distancing and relative isolation, we have the responsibility to realign and reconsider our understanding of nature and our relationship with God, the Creator of nature. We have an awesome opportunity in this time of deprivation to reconnect with ourselves, nature and our Heavenly Father, for our sake and for the sake of our world.

Read other articles by Harry Scherer

Sharing the toilet paper

Angela Guiao
Class of 2021

I was listening to the radio a few days ago, and I heard this story about a man who was being commended for sharing toilet paper.

It seems he had decided to sit by the side of the street holding a sign that said, "Share your toilet paper", and a bunch of people misunderstood and started handing him rolls of toilet paper from out of their cars. It got to the point where he had a whole stack of toilet paper, so whenever a person would stop their car and tell him they couldn’t find toilet paper in the stores, he’d give them some.

While, personally, I did get quite a chuckle from this story, after a little reflection I realized the seriousness of the underlying meaning of this whole situation.

But before I explain, I would like to backtrack a little first. These are stressful times. I hope by reading this, you do not think that I am downplaying the risks; that I am too naVve to the hardships presented with the appearance of the corona virus.

I know the constant worry, the subtle fear that every single time you touch a door handle, hold a gas pump, pick up the mail, the remnants of the virus are on it and I am guilty of the hurry to find some hand sanitizer or wash my hands.

People are staying home, some by choice others not. Businesses are closing, and some may not be capable of opening again at the end of all of this. And everyone is trying their best to stay as far away from everyone else.

During a time like this, you got to fend for yourself, right?

Wrong.

It will be okay. Some of us have a better chance at that than others. Some of us have a better chance at being okay. And because of that, I believe it is our responsibility to take care of those whose chances aren’t as great, to take care of those who are at risk.

During a time like this, we should care.

We should care about everybody and everyone because everybody and everyone is being affected. It is during this time, this time when we are expected to physically stay far apart that we should instead come closer as a community, as people, as a species.

Now, I know that some of you may wonder why. Why should we care about others? Will others provide food for your families, money for your bills? Will they take you to the hospital when you are sick? Do they even care?

And my answer to that is because we should. I don’t know why we should care about others other than the fact that it is the right thing to do. I don’t know if others will do the same for you, but that shouldn’t be a reason why we can’t do for others.

What I do know is that we can’t go about thinking only about ourselves. We can’t go about hoarding more resources than we need knowing that there are others with none. We can’t have the social Darwinist perspective in times of tragedy and confusion because why should only the fit survive when we all can, together?

Don’t give in to the panic. Don’t give in to the hysteria. Take care of those who need to be taken care of, those who you can help. And if ever comes the time when you need help, God and the good karma will come around as always.

Sometimes I get asked why I care so much about this kind of stuff. Why do I care if we care about each other?

Well, because I should.

My mom is near the at-risk age for getting corona and she can’t stop working because then she won’t get paid. I don’t want her to go to the store one day and find that she can’t buy anything she needs because it has all sold out.

I have a little sister, and she wouldn’t understand if I came home one day from grocery shopping and told her all the diapers sold out.

We all have people we care about. Why can’t we care about all people?

I know I may sound silly. Everyone already has so much going on; so much to think about in their own lives. And now, I am asking you all to care about everyone else too. Silly me.

Silly us.

Our society has become too self-absorbed, too selfish, too caught up in our own lives and problems that we forgot that we are part of a community.

We forgot how to care about others.

This month, we celebrate both Arbor day and Earth day, and it appears that the most we’ve cared about the trees or the earth is whenever it’s the topic of a political debate.

We need to care more. We need to care about the sick, the elderly, the helpless. We need to care about our world. We need to care about our planet and all the living things on it.

I hope that during these upcoming weeks, the longer we spend time trying to stay apart, we realize the importance of caring for one another. I hope that without the everyday distractions, we learn to appreciate presence and nature. As businesses close earlier, restaurants restrict orders to take out, and travel is restricted to only essential needs, I hope you decide to spend time with a loved one. I hope you take a walk, take your kids to the park, enjoy some fresh air.

I hope we strengthen the bond we have with each other as humans, as a community, as a people. I hope we appreciate the world we live on and all the living things we share it with.

I know we can do better. I know we will do better. The man with the toilet paper did. We can too.

Let us start to care about those around us. It’s what we need to do.

Let’s share the toilet paper.

Read other articles by Angela Guiao

Making change together

Morgan Rooney
Class of 2020

We’re living in a time that is much divided; we’re living amongst people who are very different from each other. Throughout all the continents, countries, states, provinces, cities, towns and villages of the world, there are few things that often bring us together. Though we are all human, the politics, religions and customs of the world often distract us from joining together to move forward into a better future for us all.

When I hear political arguments, I try to remember that nothing is all black and white. In the end, we all want the same thing: a better life for us, our children and our community. We have different opinions on the best way to get there and different mental images of what that utopian future will look like, yet we are working towards one common goal.

Ever since I was a child, I have been told about the many beautiful places in the world. I watched movies, seen countless photographs and even had the opportunity to travel to many places, both in and out of the country. When I was in elementary school, I was first told about the dangers of global warming. By the time I made it to middle school, we were taught about climate change and what that means for differing places in the world. In high school, I was able to take a science course called "Environmental Systems." In this class, we talked about the natural environmental systems in the world and different ways of creating energy in a clean way. I learned a lot and it has had a lasting impact on the way I think about the world.

In the spring of 1970, the first Earth Day was celebrated. By April 1990, over 200 million people from a variety of different nations were taking part in some sort of Earth day celebration. Despite division, many came together to raise awareness for protecting our one and only God-given home. For many years after the debut of Earth day, the world continued to grow in celebration to celebrate the Earth and what it has to offer.

It’s hardly a coincidence that Arbor Day take place slightly after Earth Day. Arbor Day, however, was around long before Earth Day. It is said that the first documented arbor plantation festival took place in MondoZedo, a Spanish village, in 1594. It was also in a Spanish village, Villanueva de la Sierra, that Arbor Day was first celebrated in 1805.

In our own country, Arbor Day wasn’t celebrated until 1872 in Nebraska City, Nebraska. According to the Arbor Day Foundation, an estimate of 1 million trees were planted in Nebraska during the first celebration. This was only the beginning. Arbor Day has been celebrated and many have been encouraged to plant and care for trees all around the world ever since. Trees offer us with many things that we can’t live without; it’s important to give back where we take to keep equilibrium in our ecosystems so we can continue to thrive.

For reasons other than these two holidays rapidly approaching, I think this is an excellent time to think about the Earth and everything in it. Given the current circumstances, there is no better time to come together (figuratively, not literally) because we are all in this together. Some are certainly having a worse time than others, but as a world, we will get through this with all of our ambition and strength. We have one home and intent to bounce right back to where we were, certainly gaining some knowledge along the way.

Alike how we’ve come together amidst this pandemic, unlike anything we’ve seen in our lifetimes, the Earth needs us to come together to make the small life changes needed to keep our planet healthy and thriving as it should be. Making small, daily changes everyday are easy for us and can make a great impact on the world.

This situation proves how quickly we can change when a crisis threats the wellbeing of ourselves and our loved ones. It’s truly amazing as I have never seen anything even similar take place since I have been on this Earth. Imagine what would happen if we made changes of a different kind on a daily basis. Although the crisis of climate change doesn’t seem nearly as imminent or personally threatening as a worldwide pandemic, it is still something that we need to combat. I admit to being guilty myself for not acting as in favor of the Earth as I possibly could. I was, however, quick to make changes in order to limit my interaction with other people. I was quick to make the decision to purchase a next day flight after the announcement that the Mount would be transitioning to remote learning. I’ve realized that if I set my mind to something, I can meet my goals. In the future, especially after things begin to revert back to normal, I hope to keep the Earth in mind.

Given that it is my senior year and I am done studying in Emmitsburg, many changes are about to take place in my life. I’ve already taken my last in-person class. I’ve transitioned to doing all of my work at home in Texas. If I was able to transition to a new environment and new way of learning, there is no reason that I shouldn’t be making changes to limit my carbon footprint.

This time is confusing, frightening and something we will remember for the rest of our lives. Everyday, I’m trying to remind myself that at a country and as a world, we will get through this stronger and more knowledgeable than we were before. The Earth is strong as it always has been, and we must do whatever we can to keep it that way. Take time during this period of isolation to celebrate the Earth we live in and everything that resides within it.

Read other articles by Morgan Rooney

Read Past Editions of Four Years at the Mount