A DAY WITHOUT CARS

(This essay originally appeared in Resurgence Magazine.)

     Car Free Day occurs this and every year on September 22nd, a day on which people around the world have been encouraged to find alternative means of transportation. Over time, as more and more diligent souls have carried out this goal, little have they realized the repercussions that this simple act would someday create for the future. September 22 is also the author's birthday.

     When people stopped getting into their cars in the morning, they began to notice things that they had forgotten. The fertile stillness of the mornings surprised them. People began to notice where the sun would rise in the sky, and they began to appreciate this simple but profound thing. Sometimes people would see the moon and the stars lingering above them in the early light. Mornings became altogether different, slower and more peaceful but at the same time more invigorating. People began to breathe deeply of the marvelous morning air, which seemed to make their bodies and minds tingle. This air was in stark contrast to the stale chemical air inside their cars, or the fumes that they had been inhaling on the freeways.

     It wasn't long at all before people began to realize just how expensive and burdensome, their automobiles had become. They had been working exhausting hours to finance them. Their cars had separated them from the sun and the sky and from other people, as if cars were heavy reptilian shells that they had been wearing over their bodies, which were craving the elements. The rudeness and aggression that people had felt inside their cars became things of the past. Instead, a new attitude emerged on the roads. Due to a slower and more humane speed, people actually greeted each other as they passed on walking trails and flower-lined bike routes, or as they shared much-improved public transportation. Complete strangers shared sips of water and even hugs occasionally. In some places in the cities, musicians lined the roads, playing for the commuters beautiful songs that rivaled the morning songs of the birds, which were also flourishing. The way to and from work became, for many, a most invigorating and inspiring part of the day.

     As more people got out of their cars, some changes happened that were hard to explain. People became more aware of their bodies and their health habits. People noticed how out of shape they had allowed themselves to become. Because they were breathing clean air, air that did not harm or weaken them, people's energy levels increased. People did not crave stimulants as much. Many people lost weight, and noticed that their skin had a new luster due to their improved routines of walking or biking to work. Many people experienced health and vigor for the first time in ages, and they swore almost religiously that they would carefully tend to their bodies for the rest of their lives. People changed their diets to lighter, more natural foods, and the soil, air, and water became healthier due to this simple change.

     Because the noise level of the cities went down immensely, people no longer had to numb themselves to their surroundings or retreat inside themselves as they had been doing for so long. In the natural silence and fresh air, people began to expand, to take in things around them, instead of spending subtle energies to shut the world out. People got in touch with the change of seasons, and with the cycles of the moon. Many people noticed for the first time, as though waking up from bad dreams, the ugliness of our cities and the destruction of the countryside. People immediately demanded that their cities be reconstructed. With all the technology, this did not take as long as the leaders first said it would.

     As people became more aware of their surroundings, they began to notice how toxic their world had become. Millions of people had been working in sick buildings, glass boxes that had no opening windows, which kept out fresh air and sealed in the fumes and chemicals that office equipment emitted. People noticed just how depressing their workplaces were, especially considering how much time they spent at them. People realized that they had turned their work into drudgery, that they dreaded going to work, and yet they had once considered themselves wealthy. This had to change immediately. Just as people had a new attitude about their bodies and their cities, people began to see work in a different way as well. Some people decided that the work they do is a way of praising life, of giving thanks for the gifts they had been given and passing on that gratitude.

     It wasn't long before a massive remodeling of workplaces began to happen. This, in turn, created a new demand for architects, city planners, sculptors, painters, botanists, musicians, and other artists. This new sort of work was genuinely creative and fun, and for many, going to work became immensely enjoyable, a necessary part of life. This work was so much better, most people agreed, than working in car factories or oil refineries, or even computer companies. Fewer people began to dream of the day when they could stop working. Elderly people became great sources of knowledge, because they had worked for so long. Contrary to what accountants and economists predicted, the economy boomed, although the formulas for measuring a healthy economy had been radically changed.

     Other paradoxes arose. By slowing down, people seemed to have more time. As they spent more time out in nature, among other happy people, each moment seemed just a little longer. People's new levels of health gave them more energy, which in turn seemed to give them more time, so people were less in a hurry.

     Finances changed, too, as people got healthier. The money that had been spent on health care began to be put to other uses. Governments began treating oil as a precious resource, and new types of transportation were developed that were extremely efficient. The money people had once spent on militaries to fight over oil reserves that didn't belong to them, began to be put to other uses, such as building water fountains and lining trails with flowers and trees. Military engineers, who had once built deadly missiles, thoroughly enjoyed this new work, and were astoundingly good at it.

     People's sense of space changed as well. The long distances they had once traveled daily became unimaginable. People had more time for their families, their communities, and themselves. They didn't need to buy as many things to stay happy, and they were finding out that many things that give true satisfaction are priceless. Houses became smaller and cozier, while the gardens around them became elaborate and lush. Cities flourished like festivals. Because people were no longer locked up alone in their cars, they were friendlier and people had rich feelings toward their communities. Front doors on houses were frequently kept unlocked. Neighbors gave each other gifts of fruits and vegetables that they had grown themselves, and sometimes they got together and sang songs of gratitude in the evenings.

By Douglas Dupler