Frontlines

“I’ll have a London Fog, please.”

Carmen ordered her drink at the counter and waited nervously while the barista steamed the milk. They decided to meet at Clay Pigeon, a cafe that sat on the corner of Hemlock and Sixth just across from the deli. Pat Foley had been running this shop for over twenty-five years, and it was a bit of a cornerstone in Cedar Grove. Not only did they serve an above average cup of joe, but it was also the only cafe within a thirty kilometre radius. Pat kept it quaint and cozy, recently installing an open fireplace, which was nice for the colder winter evenings. They didn’t have much use for it now, all things considered, but it was a comforting, homespun addition. Carmen took her drink off the counter and headed towards the back where Macy sat and waited.

Carmen’s anxious energy was amplified by nerves and excitement. She had been wanting to do something meaningful for a long time and now it was finally happening, but what exactly was going to come out of this meeting she wasn’t quite sure.

The chatter in the room began to settle as everyone found their seating. Only eight people had shown up, and it was a bit disappointing given the work they had put into the planning, but it was nothing to be surprised about.

George sat in the corner. His nerves began to shake. He didn’t know everyone but it didn’t matter, this was about Cedar Grove and the people who lived there, the children most importantly. He wasn’t really a natural leader but somebody needed to get this going. He took a deep breath, and thinking about his granddaughter Clara, who was almost one year old, he stood up.

“It has been pretty hot lately, as we have all been well aware. They are calling it a heat dome. Not only that, we have atmospheric rivers, polar vortices, and who knows what else coming for us. It seems like our world is changing and nobody is doing much to stop the wheels that are driving this. It is happening now, not fifty or one hundred years from now. My little granddaughter Clara is just a baby and she is going to be living with all of this for a long time. I think we should start off this meeting by giving everyone a chance to introduce themselves and share a little bit about what your hopes might be going forward. My name is George Anderson and I am one of the local doctors. I have been here for almost thirty years and I think we need to make some plans for how Cedar Grove is going to cope with the changes that are happening. Who would like to go next?”

The room fell silent and everyone looked around awkwardly. Carmen felt the urge to say something, but wasn’t sure if she was quite ready. All at once, she felt like she could feel every detail in the room; the clock on the wall dragging it’s gears, like it was fighting for every second that was gained; the air in the cafe felt heavy and muggy, like a weight pushing down on top of her; and a single bead of sweat reluctantly dripped down her face as her heart pounded relentlessly against her chest.

Finally, Carmen stood up. All she knew at this moment was that somebody had to say something, and nobody else was speaking up.

“Hey everyone,” she said, her voice shaking. “I’m Carmen and this is my friend Macy.” She gestured awkwardly to Macy, who replied by giving a small and quick wave.

“I guess I’ll just say that I’m here because I, uh, I care about this place.”

As she spoke, she felt her body stiffen and her posture straightened.

“Not just that,” she continued, “but I care about this earth. It’s hot out and I’m tired and I’m not sure if anyone else is doing anything and if they are, it doesn’t seem like much. So maybe there’s something we can do. That’s all.”

Carmen sat down and felt the blood rush to her face. The crowd started their round of introductions, beginning with a high school teacher named Daniel Albrecht; Aaron Harris, a writer for the local newspaper; Macy’s uncle Dave; Sarah Rupert, a receptionist at the hospital where George works; and Amy Greene, a recent college graduate who just moved to the area.

George spoke again: “Thank you everyone. I’d like to ask Carmen to share something with us now.”

This time she was prepared for what she wanted to say.

“Hi again”, she said, clearing her throat. “I just wanted to share that a few weeks ago I was in science class in school and it was blistering out and my teacher was talking about tree clearing. He was saying that it’s an important thing to do in the process of building pipelines. Anyway, it shocked me because here we are, sitting in a muggy room in forty degree weather, and they’re telling us that one of the important things we should be learning is tree clearing. Anyway, I just thought it was ridiculous. That’s all I wanted to share.”

The group surrounding her nodded in agreement, with many turning to Daniel, who taught at the same school.

“Can I just say,” he began, adjusting his glasses, “that as an English teacher, my knowledge of the curriculum of other subjects is rather limited and I was certainly unaware of this. But I certainly do not disagree with the sentiment that the fact that this is being taught is rather absurd and entirely inappropriate.”

“I would also like to say,” Sarah chimed in, “that what you just said, Carmen, is heartbreaking.”

“How do they get away with teaching things like that? Is this really what they’re teaching you?” Pete asked, turning towards Macy.

“Uh, I guess so,” she nervously replied.

Carmen felt the energy in the room tense. George felt it too, and spoke up.

“As a doctor here in the community, it seems like we are not even recognizing the problems we face. It is almost like we are pretending that climate change is not happening. We lost over 600 people in the province last summer because of the heat. Sure, we are just one small rural community, but there was a famous anthropologist named Margaret Mead who said: ‘Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed it is the only thing that ever has.’ I think we need to work together to try and understand what climate change is and think about how we need to change things here in Cedar Grove. Starting with what is being taught in our school seems like a good place to begin.”

There were a lot of nods around the room and a plan was made to meet the following Tuesday, and every Tuesday thereafter. As the group began to dissipate, Dave offered to drop Carmen off at home, considering it was not far from Macy’s.

“That didn’t go too bad,” Macy said as they sat in the truck together.

“Not at all,” Carmen replied. “In fact, I think it went really well.”

She stared out the window on the ride home. Carmen was tired, but she felt proud of herself. Suddenly, she felt herself lurch forward as Dave slammed on the brakes, barely missing a falcon as it flew across the road.

“I’m so sorry,” he said, red and flustered. “It just came out of nowhere.”

Carmen watched the dappled bird glide through the air in ecstasy, unaware that it had just brushed with death. It soared even higher until it was swallowed by the sky.