As part of my current series on God's Green Equity, I've invited those in my life more engaged in this than I am to share their thoughts in the form of a guest blog post. Today's post is by my son, Matt, who recently relocated to a neighborhood in Anacostia, DC, just a stone's throw from the Anacostia River.
River Reflections
River Reflections
 |
| Remnant of wetlands on the Anacostia River, Matt Kuniholm, 2013 |
If rivers are reflections of the people and places
surrounding them, they can bring ongoing, seemingly endless joy as we see a
tranquil, beautiful or awe-inspiring reflection renewed by the ever-steady flow
of water. We may want to jump in and swim, floating and spinning around,
enjoying the current’s clean pull. We may stand back, contemplate and create
paintings or poems on the source and structure of the river. We may throw in a
line or net to harvest and enjoy the river’s bounty. And all of these responses
reflect our own character which values and enjoys the character reflected by
the river.
But if rivers are reflections of the people and places
surrounding them, it can become very uncomfortable to gaze out over a river and
find an unwelcome reflection staring back. There’s no way to hide, except by
looking the other way. When thousands of
tons of trash flow down and empty at the mouth of the river, there’s only one
direction it could have come from. When fish are dying and their rotting
bellies are floating in stagnant water, there’s only one direction that the
contamination could have come from. When phrases like ‘the other side of the
river’ connote dangerous and foreign worlds to people who use a river to divide
and protect them from their fears, there’s only one reason that could be. And
when rivers are dammed, diked, channeled and over-allocated, leaving a trickle
of water where powerful rivers once roared, there’s only one direction to look
to find the reason. In all these examples, it’s clear that the cause of any
correlation flows in one direction: people, in one way or another, have the
capacity to manage water, water resources and watersheds. Their decisions are
reflected in the extent to which rivers maintain their character and contribute
to the life and joy and peace of the people and places around them.
River Reflections in Washington
This dynamic reflection of a place on its people, and the
people on their place, is true in many ways of the city in which I live, Washington D.C. United States
has established a water management framework that has been replicated in many
other countries throughout the world. But even with this myriad of environmental
agencies, laws and organizations, the river closest to home – to the heart of
our government and the city of Washington – has been recognized as one of the
most contaminated rivers in the country and has historically been seen as a
racial and socio-economic boundary segregating the city.
 |
| Aerial photo of the Anacostia river, National Journal, 1991, |
Having grown up in the DC area and lived, worked, played and
worshiped within the city for the last several years, I’ve found it hard to
avoid looking head on at the reflection cast by the Anacostia River
Let me explain:
I’ve been encouraged by the number of individuals and
organizations working to restore the Anacostia River to the incredible resource
it should be for the people and ecosystems of DC. For example, the Anacostia Watershed Society (AWS), a non-profit organization leading environmental
education, stewardship and recreation activities throughout the watershed, has
a straightforward mission: “to make the Anacostia River
The AWS, together with other local organizations such asGroundwork Anacostia River Smithsonian's Anacostia Community Museum,
recently assembled a great exhibit on urban waterways and civic engagement
which highlights different community groups involved in reclaiming the Anacostia River
The AWS, together with other local organizations such as
 |
| The Anacostia Community Museum |
I’ve also been encouraged that people of faith, particularly Christians from multiple churches throughout DC, are supporting what has too often been a secular environmental movement. For over a year and a half, a network of Christians in conservation and environmental science professions in the DC metro area has been meeting on a monthly basis to participate in environmental conservation activities in partnership with organizations working throughout the watershed, to pray, study the Bible and encourage each other in our professions in the environmental sciences. The group, which is organized as a local chapter of an international organization of Christians in Conservation (A Rocha USA), is now working towards establishing an urban field center within the
Refractions of the
River
Despite these encouraging signs, many people look at theAnacostia
River
Speaking as someone who works
professionally in the environmental sciences, and who spends much of my time
outside of work involved in community-based conservation and recreation, I can
say that nothing could sustain my hopefulness for any type of environmental
restoration except the promise of the river of life flowing from the Christian
gospel. Throughout the Bible, this river of life refers to the Spirit of God
which leads people to forgiveness and restoration through faith in Jesus. Were
it not for this source of the river of life, my own ability to sustain this
life, joy, and hope for restoration would soon run dry, leaving me a lifeless
remnant of what life could be. And if rivers reflect the people and places
surrounding them, I would expect the river to follow course as well.Despite these encouraging signs, many people look at the
So it’s with great anticipation that I look not to myself, or the laws, regulations, organizations and agencies doing good work to conserve and restore our rivers, but rather to the source of life and our hope for restoration. I join with the singer who sings:
O Lord, how manifold are your works!
In wisdom have you made them all;
The earth is full of your creatures (Psalm 104:24)
God is our refuge and strength, a
very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear though
the earth gives way,
though
the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea,
though
its waters roar and foam,
though
the mountains tremble at its swelling.
There
is a river whose streams make glad the city of God
the
holy habitation of the Most High.
God
is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved;
God
will help her when morning dawns (Psalm 46:1-5).
 |
| River of Life, Tiffany Studios, 1921 |
“Via
my art, I hope to create a mediated reality of beauty, hope, and reconciled
relationships and cultures…. I have found that mediation of any kind is never
black-and-white but prismatic and complex too. In order to find hope, even in
the midst of the broken and torn fragments of relationships, in order to begin
to journey into the heart of the divide, we must first wrestle with the deeper
issues of faith. We must be willing to be broken ourselves into prismatic
shards by the Master Artist, God, so that Christ’s light can be refracted to
us.”
As I look out over the Anacostia River
As always, your thoughts, comments, questions are welcome.
This post is also part of an ongoing series on God's Green Equity.
Earlier
posts on the same topic:
As always, your thoughts, comments, questions are welcome.
