"Plants and animals have learned
to adapt to my many climates
and harness my energy to thrive.
What am I, exactly? I am made up
of a mixture of gases.
I am the perfect combination of
nitrogen and oxygen for life on
Earth."
Air is its own narrator in this uncomplicated introduction to what it is and how it has been part of life since a child's birth. Most of the time, no one pays much attention to it. In fact, how can we be sure it is there at all times? It can't be seen, smelled, or heard; it certainly can be felt.
Our bodies feel air when it moves around us. It carries moisture like rain, snow, sleet, or fog, while helping to determine how plants and animals survive or don't. What it carries is vast and consequential; ask someone who is allergic to pollen. We count on it to spread seeds that grow new and necessary plants, and bring rain for those who depend on moisture to ensure needed sustenance for many.
Captioned maps of both western and eastern hemispheres help readers see and understand how air affects temperatures around the world. Adaptation to air's climates needs to be controlled in order for much that happens to people and in places everywhere.
Air offers protection from fluctuations in temperature and the harmful rays of the sun. It is not in space; it is where we are. We all share the air we breathe. It is up to us to protect that which protects us.
An author's note provides further information, shared simply.
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