The role plastic (doesn’t) play in my life…

I think the sippy cup was made as another way to remove ourselves from the process of engaging with the child to drink something.  Small glass jam jars are perfect for little hands thus- encouraging a beautiful interaction between you and the child. It's really mind-blowing when you really start to look at things, and realize that the product (plastic) was made for 'the consumer’s convenience', and it is really far from a convenience!

It has been a slow transition for me over the past 8 years- a slow conscious engagement in simplifying.  It began out of a necessity to reduce my spending due to the level of income I had to work with.  I began to nurture a garden space in the neighborhood P-patch, growing vegetables and herbs.  Cooking my meals at home gave me the freedom to afford purchasing organic foods.  I shifted my thought process to the importance of where the food was coming from, low on the level of processing and free from GMO’s.  It was not only an act to be conscious about what is going into my body, but a conscious thought of the effects of my consumption on a larger scale.  So in making these choices, I had to let go of other ways that I could spend my money, or be creative if I was in need of something…To look at an old sweater, and see so many possibilities!!!

About 5 years ago I made the choice to be vegan, around the same time, I began composting all my food waste, purchased a re-usable travel mug, stopped using toilet paper, transitioned to a cash system and really made effort to be conscious of my consumption.  It is an interesting journey, begun with baby steps- with no idea that it would lead me to where I am now, as I continue to evolve through this engagement.

I began to realize that my garbage pail was acquiring less and less waste, emptying a small 2 gallon pail every week and a half.  My recycle container is small as well, with maybe a need every two weeks to empty it.  Reading an article in a local publication about where our plastic goes when we send it off to be recycled,  led me to a commitment  to stop purchasing bottled water last June (2007)- it seems such a waste to consume a bottle of water and toss the bottle (if you think re-using the bottle is effective, do some research- the plastic begins to leach into the liquid you refill the bottle with- what are we really drinking?).  This also led me to stop putting plastic in the recycle bin (because I do not want it going to Indonesia, where small children play on mountains of plastic bottles and recycling plastic where the environmental standards are very low and people who are doing the recycling are exposed to very toxic conditions). I really began to think about plastic and the many effects of this product on the entire eco-system.  I began to use glass jars and bowls to store food in the refrigerator (freshly made salsa lasts twice as long in a glass container!), purchase bulk foods in paper bags and mason jars, and I try to choose pre-packaged items that are in keeping with these intentions.  It means making that transition to being committed to an awareness of my effects on a daily basis- so this means that I really have to think about what I am buying, and where it will end up when I am finished with my use of it.  I just recently found out that the bottled water industry consumes 1.5 million barrels of oil to produce the 28 billion bottles of water manufactured annually! (seattle.consciouschoice.com Dec.2007).  I sold my car last spring to be freer from my consumption of oil and upon reading one more reason, I was completely satisfied to continue my exploration to live as free from plastic as I possibly can!

...As we each begin to take steps where we are actively engaging in the process, it is amazing the effect it has on a greater scale...baby steps at first, each decision coming from the heart- lead to bigger steps (which really don’t seem any bigger) because you are coming from a place of inner knowledge and truth.

With wild synergy!