I've gotten myself into another ethical dilemma. Our family has a place at the lake, and the idea is for it to be as low-maintenance as possible. When we get there, we want to enjoy spending time together, not spending time on the yard or house. So years ago, a neighbor asked me if I wanted some "lamb's ear" he was thinning out of his garden. He described it as a hardy ground cover the deer wouldn't eat -- which sounded just perfect to me, so I said, "Sure!"
It has taken over and is now holding my family hostage. I should have known something was wrong when I heard deer won't eat it. This stuff is on steroids! It's invasive, impossible to kill and it chokes out other plants. Last year, my daughter and I spent two days pulling it out by the roots, which invigorated it -- we have more now than ever.
I did my research after it spread all over the yard. The technical ("binomial") name for it is Stachys byzantina, and it is native to Turkey, Armenia and Iran. Wikipedia says lamb's ear is known as "Scouting toilet paper" because Boy Scouts are known to use the leaves as toilet paper. I need to hold a jamboree in my yard for few days to thin out the plants.
So, besides not liking this plant, and being thwarted in my attempts to remove it, what is my ethical dilemma? It's the bees. Bees absolutely love it. You might think that's another reason I'd want to get rid of it, but no. The population of honeybees is drastically dropping -- CBS Sunday Morning reported last Sunday that half of all honeybee colonies were lost in the past year, a world-wide problem that has been growing for years. I want to do everything I can to provide a positive environment for bees.
So, I have invasive plants not native to our environment. Ordinarily, I would want to remove such plants and rely on only native plants. Our church has been encouraging environmentally friendly landscaping because native plants are best for native insects and animals. But, apparently these Stachys byzantina are good for our bees, and because bees are endangered, I don't want to remove their food source. Can you see how difficult this is?
This is a very small environmental ethical dilemma. For most of us, there are many difficult choices to make concerning the environment -- many of which have significant economic and quality of life consequences. Choosing to use dishes that need to be washed versus paper plates that can be composted brings up whether the use of water, which has to be heated, has more impact on the environment than disposable plates that don't require volunteers to clean them. Choosing a hybrid car that costs more but uses less gas versus a sport utility vehicle that carries more passengers and is safer in an accident also brings up ethical issues: Why don't we have more public transit options? And why aren't environmentally friendly cars affordable for the poor?
Then, there are the tough choices about doing without, and the even larger political issues of how our economy is dependent on the low-cost production of products that often means making compromises about damaging the environment. It makes my invasive plant versus bees situation seem pretty tame.
I'm praying about it. I'm praying for the bees, and I'm praying for our environment. Because I know God created this world good -- including the bees and the plants native to Turkey, Armenia and Iran. I know we are damaging God's good earth through our disregard for this planet. We place our own current desires for cheap, convenient products over the needs of our children and our children's children -- and certainly over the impact on animals and the poor, who are most affected by climate change.
I keep humming, "This is My Father's World." Although the language is a bit dated, it hits the point:
That though the wrong seems oft so strong,
God is the ruler yet.
NAN Religion on 05/23/2015