Earth is 4.5 billion years old.

Its age alone is startling and proves that no matter what manner of toxic harm humans can devise, the earth shall endure. Or as the bumper sticker says, “Earth bats last.”

Perhaps history holds a different story for the human species. Still, since 1970, April 22 has been the day of national awareness centered on our fragile environment.

Organizers of the second annual Earth Day Celebration at Bayview Corner see April 22, as a day to rekindle public commitment and activism, as well as a day to think about ways to honor our planet. They invite everyone to join the celebration from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. this Sunday.

A larger-than-life “earth ball” greets people as they walk into the Bayview corner hub. It is a welcoming and colorful symbol of what Earth Day Celebration organizers hope to accomplish with Sunday’s event.

“The impetus was to celebrate what we have and to appreciate what is here,” said co-organizer David Iles.

Iles explained that climate change and the pollution of the Earth is a reality that all must face.

“We wanted to find out, ‘What people are thinking about the earth’?” explained Toni Marthaller-Anderson, another member of the organizer team.

“Al Gore brought the issues to the forefront with his film (‘An Inconvenient Truth’),” Marthaller-Anderson said. “We want to explore what is happening with the earth and how it effects people’s lives.”

The team decided that using art was a good way to approach the issues about climate change. “Celebrating our Earth with Art,” is a show by community members of all ages, disciplines and artistic experience. The collection of artworks will be displayed in the Front Room and in the Hub of the Cash Store today through April 24.

Local painter Rob Schouten is one of the artists participating in the gallery show. Schouten’s painting entitled “The Irresistible Regeneration of Peace” is a painting of intricate symbolism.

Schouten said that the idea of using art to start a conversation with the community is a positive approach to examining the tough issues of the world.

“Art is a good way to listen to information and to think about it,” he said.

Schouten will also be the artistic helmsman for one of a variety of activities throughout the Earth Day celebration.

Schouten will be guiding participants in the creation of a temporary mandala on the chess board in the courtyard outside the Cash Store.

The word “mandala” is from the classical Indian language of Sanskrit. Loosely translated it means “circle,” but a mandala is far more than a simple shape. It represents wholeness and can be seen as a model for the organizational structure of life itself. The “circle with a center” pattern is the basic structure of creation in nature and is seen in biology, geology, chemistry, physics and astronomy.

On the planet, living things are made of cells and each cell has a nucleus — all display circles with centers. The crystals that form ice, rocks and mountains are made of atoms. And each atom itself is a mandala.

Schouten has been creating mandalas for many years. He said it was the perfect activity for Earth Day because of its ability to bring people and the earth together.

Outdoor mandalas are not permanent. Part of the beauty of creating a mandala, Schouten said, is that it starts as chaos and, through a process of sorting and ordering, turns into art and then goes back into the chaos of the earth again.

Schouten said the mandala will be about 6-8 feet in diameter and there will be roughly about 20 squares to fill.

“The idea is kind of like a coloring book,” said Schouten.

The rules for making the mandala include a ban on tools (except those made on the spot), and materials are limited to what is available from the earth. Also, no vegetation can be killed or harmed in any way for the mandala.

Those who want to help make the mandala should bring things that can be used for the artwork. Schouten said that simple materials such as dandelions, pebbles, pine cones, berries, leaf clippings, dropped flower blooms — from rhododendrons and azaleas, for example — and pieces of driftwood are just some of the possibilities.

“By contributing materials from their own yards and gardens, the art has meaning and a function in the community. The end result will be dependent on what people bring to it,” he said.

Other community activities on Earth Day will include tree plantings, science projects, and singing and storytelling for children. There will also be live music and a community jam session.

Elise Miller, executive director of the Institute for Children’s Environmental Health, will be the keynote speaker for the day. Additional speakers and panel discussions are also scheduled.

Community members and friends can take advantage of a walking tour of the sustainable design elements at Bayview Corner and in the Cash Store, while local and national groups will be sharing information on sustainable life practices at several tables throughout the festivities.

The Earth Day Celebration is co-sponsored by the South Whidbey Environmental Navigation Community and the Goosefoot Community Fund.

Patricia Duff can be reached at 221-5300 or pduff@southwhidbeyrecord.com.