"Dirt Is Alive and It Eats Poop"

This is probably one of the first funny environmental idioms that I can remember my Dad saying. When my sisters and I would help him in the family garden as kids, he would always interject some type of long-standing knowledge concerning the task at hand. Picking rocks and weeding were never that fulfilling for us, but at least Dad was funny.

Thinking back to his phrase, I realize there was a lot to learn from that. Without the microorganisms in the dirt, things would not decompose, which would mean other things would not grow, which, consequently, means none of us would be living. Dirt, soil, and sand are pretty amazing in that they can be molded into the shapes we or nature desires; and there is nothing like sinking your hands into rich, loose soil, and feeling it slip between your fingers. I have always enjoyed walking around barefoot for this specific reason. I like to feel the ground under my feet and in between my toes.

There are a lot of health benefits and psychological advantages to being more engaged with the earth as well. Scientists are finding that playing in the dirt, with it’s friendly bacteria, can boost the immune system as well as help to increase the brain’s “happiness” chemical, serotonin. The results so far suggest that simply inhaling these bacteria could help elicit a positive state of mind. One is able to get a dose of feeling good just by taking a walk on the beach or by rooting around in a flower pot.

Anyway, it seems almost sad that we might need a book to give us ideas on how to engage kids with nature and the environment, but we welcome I Love Dirt nonetheless. It can be purchased here.

"To forget how to dig the earth and to tend the soil is to forget ourselves." -Mohandas Gandhi

Until next Wednesday, Cheers! -BA