Dear Mother Nature

Dear Mother Nature,

It’s been a while since I have personally written to appeal to you to help me here in Houston, Texas. I used to picture you as a kind, benevolent old lady, kind of like an older Glenda, the good witch, who made all of the beautiful nature surrounding me. Beginning when I was a young girl living in a concrete-laden part of the city of Philadelphia, I appreciated all things green, and flowers and butterflies. When I moved to Houston I appreciated all of the gorgeous trees (including palm trees) and the tropical flowers we have here.

Now, however, I am thinking you are more like the Wicked Witch. Many of us around the country can’t appreciate nature this summer, and particularly those drought stricken in our area, over-drenched on the East Coast, and those prone to wildfires in the west due to extreme dry conditions.

My garden, what’s left of it, is not made for desert-like conditions. It would be one thing if I had the type of plants that thrive where there is little rain, like the tropicals in Santa Barbara, San Diego, or in Arizona. But I have stuff that thrives in a moist environment. Houston, if you recall, is known for it’s humidity. Not this summer. No moisture of any kind to be had. It hasn’t rained in a solid month, yet temperatures are soaring.

We in Houston usually dread our electricity bills in the summer. Now we dread our enormous water bills.

This is the second summer in a row you have given us a drought, Mother Nature. Enough is enough! I am thinking more about the ranchers and farmers and farm animals who must be suffering. I am thinking about the trees lost in Memorial Park last year – hundreds of them. I am thinking of the wildfires that we had towards Austin leveling a few towns. This is serious stuff.

So aside from my selfishness of being aggravated over high water bills and keeping some semblance of plant life going, I am disturbed more for others than for myself.

In other words, CUT IT OUT.

Bring some of those enormous and frequent rainstorms away from the East Coast, where gardens have literally drowned this summer, south and west to us in Texas.

I am losing patience with you Mother Nature. These crazy weather patterns have got to stop. I am doing my part, recycling, and reusing. I am working on being kinder to our resources and planet. Lots of people have committed to this.

So please have a heart and give those suffering this summer some relief.

Sincerely,

Arlene, The Hot Flashes lady