About twenty years ago I was living on the east coast  in a rather large condo. I have a vision problem and consequently have a difficult time seeing in dark rooms. Because of this I usually had more lights on than was necessary. One day two of my grandchildren were visiting; the oldest of the two, my grandson, was three and a half. 

He was a wise little guy, much wiser than his grandmother was at the time. While I was conscious of my environment and worked towards cleaning it up, I had some blind spots and one of them was the lights which I left on even when not in the room. And to be honest I really hadn’t given this bad habit a second thought; after all I didn’t see well. 

One evening my two grandchildren were playing around as children do, running from  room to room, laughing and shouting and having a good ole time. Suddenly my grandson became quiet ,looked at me and said, “grandma why do you have all the lights on in all the rooms? “Would you help me save my planet, and turn them off ?”  

I was astounded by this little guy’s request. I turned off all the lights and began training myself in the art of  seeing with other eyes. I can now walk through dark rooms without knocking things over or falling down; all it took was a little awareness, a little practice, and a litlle boy who asked me to help him save his planet.  

I don’t know if my being more aware of my lights  has made any difference in the scheme of things, but it has made me feel better. And I’m pretty sure that in twenty years I’ve saved a little energy. I can’t help wondering how much energy could be saved if everyone became just a little bit more aware of what they’re doing. Lights Out.