I was walking recently on the outskirts of Waterville and the clouds were spectacular. It started to rain lightly, but I was warm and dry enough and it was pleasant. The trees and the field of corn I passed were rejoicing in the rain. And I thought to myself, “What a beautiful world we have been given. and I want to do whatever it takes to keep this world fruitful and healthy for our grandchildren.”

Because our world is changing and that’s not a political statement. It’s just a matter of facts. Politicians may lie, but millions of scientific observations and our own eyes tell us the truth.

So, maybe our next car can be an all-electric vehicle that will save us a ton of money in fuel. Or we can simply call our politicians. Unfortunately, we cannot expect many of them to lead. They are afraid of the millions of dollars that the Koch brothers will donate to their opponents if they don’t toe the fossil fuel industry line.

So we have to lead our politicians. We have to let them know that our votes depend largely on what they do to protect our children’s world.

We have the technology now to switch over quickly to renewable energy if we can find the political will. The American people support this transition, and people are inherently caring and heroic. In wartime we risk our lives to save our families. So let us take action now for our grandchildren’s world. Years from now, when they ask us what we did to protect their lives, let us tell them something we can be proud of.

Richard Thomas

Waterville


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