Sea Spray, Winds of God, &...Plastics?

I feel the winds of God today; today my sail I lift,

though heavy oft with drenching spray  and torn with many a rift;

if hope but light the water's crest, and Christ my bark will use,

I'll seek the seas at his behest, and brave another cruise.

Voices United 625 vs 1

The floods have lifted up, O Lord,
    the floods have lifted up their voice;
    the floods lift up their roaring.
4 More majestic than the thunders of mighty waters,
    more majestic than the waves of the sea,
    majestic on high is the Lord!

Psalm 93: 4-5 NRSVue

This will be an unusual year for us as we embark on two trips within Canada, one to the west and the other to the east. We will be visiting Haida Gwaii the archipelago off the coast of British Columbia and then later in the summer, Change Islands, adjacent to Fogo Island in Newfoundland. We've been to Change Islands often and our elderly neighbour is bemused by our predeliction for heading out on windy and stormy days for the thrill of big waves and salt spray. 

It was a jolt to read this week that the aerosol "forever chemicals" from plastics in sea spray could be as toxic as industrial air pollution. While we would like to believe that these remote locations wouldn't be affected in the same way as other parts of the world this might be a delusion.

                                                                             Ruth in Iceland 

Plastics are now everywhere, including our arteries and it shouldn't be a shock or surprise. Half of all the plastic ever produced have been created in the last fifteen years. This addiction to plastics in every aspect of our lives threatens to overwhelm us. 

This year the Earth Day (tomorrow) theme is Planet vs Plastics with a call to reduce the production of plastics by 60 % and by 2040. This seems hugely ambitious yet vital for the wellbeing of all living creatures. 

One of my favourite hymns, I Feel the Winds of God Today, invokes the exhilaration of the voyage of faith in Christ. On this Earth Sunday the journey to eliminate plastics doesn't have quite the same cachet yet it can be the Creator's call for this moment.