Sustainability endgame

So, here we are, at the end of things, and it has been a fun trip. Seeing how the term sustainability has changed for different people has proven what is good about the word, that is, once established as a value, becomes more than a dictionary-definable word. This is where it differs from Environment, as it is more flexible and related to lifestyle, and Green, which is a trendy label that may or may not fall by the wayside, or worse, breed a negative reaction. For some, it is a career choice, something that will be an umbrella term concerning the industry they work in. For some, it is an education issue, where their greatest interest is in spreading the gospel of green, and hopefully without alienating the pagans that we want to convert. For everyone, it is a lens through which we check ourselves, trying to improve, and lessen our impact on the earth we tread. Even for people whose careers will not be remotely related to the sustainability, the lens will be there, and, when asked to contribute, these people will take sustainability into consideration. This, in and of itself, will be a great deal better than previous generations. I do not believe that we, in our generation, will even closely achieve sustainability, but if anything has been shown by our study of history, it took us since Industrialization to create this mess, and it won't be fixed by any quick cure-all. It takes generational change, and future generations can't get further if we don't start the trip for them. So, while a classroom journey has ended, the book is about to be ours to write, and let's write it well, so that when we've done our best to save the world, we've saved it not for ourselves, but for others. I just, and yes, I am this much of a nerd, thought of Frodo giving Samwise the book at the end of the Trilogy and saying, "the Shire has been saved. But not for me." Isn't that a wholly sustainable attitude?