Editing Max Cromwell

The following is an excerpt from the journal of Max Cromwell, a scientist working to save the Earth from death.


December 16th, 2151

Max Cromwell here. This is the beginning of my journal entries - my personal form of therapy. This past year has been the hardest of my life - at 37, happily married, I was given an ultimatum by the Canadian government - be forced to live in the Metaverse or be given the opportunity to work with a team of scientists from around the world to collaboratively find a way to bring the Earth back from the brink of death. I'm one of the 10,000 scientists that were chosen to be on the research team for Project New Earth. It's day 411 - it's been a little over a year now since the Project commenced. My wife, Camilla, is also on the team. Our research focuses on finding solutions to clean our dying oceans. The world converting to the Metaverse was no easy endeavor - the multitudes of people opposed to the mandatory assimilation into the new world delayed the commencement of the Project. We're already running on a clock here! The average Joe just doesn't understand the complexity of the situation the Earth is in - the human race as we know it is about to become extinct. My fellow colleagues and I are the only ones who can possibly understand the inner workings of the natural chaos that has ensued on Earth and possibly come to find a solution!  See, the thing is, the oceans of the Earth can exist without us; however, we cannot survive without them. We need them. The oceans are the "lungs" of the Earth. They are our climate regulator and the ultimate food factory. Try explaining this to non-scientific folk. It's in one ear and out the other.
 
It's been an exhausting year. It's overwhelming and I try to avoid thinking about the big picture - my wife and I just focus on moving forward, one day at a time. There's been so little discovery. So much time and effort that's felt wasted. I've felt so hopeless the last couple of weeks. Spending the few hours a day of allotted "free time" with my wife has been the only thing keeping me going. We haven't made much progress in our research - we've been working with manipulating bacteria to aid in the clean-up of our oceans. There's pollution everywhere you look. Humans have stopped swimming in our oceans and lakes for decades now. I constantly dream of the day we find something ground-breaking, something to get us out of the mess we’re in. 
 
Thank god for technology - at least this form of hell still allows us to keep in touch with our loved ones. The government permits all forms of communications with each other. I understand the forcing of our hand in pushing us all into the metaverse, but for many it's a hard reality to live with. Talking to my family is what keeps us going. I keep telling myself it's just 5 years. We'll see everyone again in just a few short years. Camilla and I just need to keep our heads high, our brains focused.
 
Until next time,
Max