If you look to me and tell me, "The world makes me sad." I'll agree in a heartbeat, with sad eyes. And yet, with a sad smile I will have to disagree and tell you that even though the world can make me sad, it can also make me smile. Too many of us are not concerned, and I'm not saying we should want to stop living on our sad, beautiful earth, I'm saying we should want to fix it because it makes us cry over it's barren wastelands and polluted waters. There are people convinced we can one day live on Mars, or the moon, or just want to leave the future of our planet to our generations to come; our kids and their kids.

If today's world makes you sad, I want to know what you'll do about it. Will you recycle? Will you use solar energy? Plant a tree every year?

If today's world makes you sad, is there nothing about it that makes you happy?

Yes, I live in fear our wondrous planet will be torn to shreds in mere years by the unhealthy habits of littering people and factories puffing out clouds of smoke into our lungs, almost like a cigarette tugs on your hand to make you put it in your mouth.

I fear the inevitable wildfires barreling their way toward my home, my friends' homes, my gorgeous forests I am so in love with. I fear the hurricanes that have been so relentless, named like people as if we should be conditioned to detest our fellow humans.

We all live on this planet, and yet there are others who are so adamant about refusing to believe in climate change and refusing to care for our home. They are the ones I fear most.

Even though I am terrified of the future, and today's world makes me sad, I look down at the ground on sunny days and see ants marching through the grass, crumbs being carried on their backs, and I grin. I see a bumblebee, the species striving to survive, and I smile. My niece learns a new world, and my heart swells.

The earth is still beautiful and happy. We have much to live for, and even if we feel like we can't change the way the planet grows, we have to try. We try for the sake of our families, future children, and friends. We try for the spectacular forests and sparkling oceans and lakes. We try for ourselves.

Learn about our planet and what you can do to help. Below are two organizations dedicated to making the earth a better place.

Friends of the Earth

GreenPeace