Why Aren't We Talking About This...Seriously!??

"There is a disturbing theory about the human species that has begun to take on an alarming level of reality. It seems that the behavior of the human race is displaying uncanny parallels to the behavior of pathogenic, or disease-causing, organisms." - Humanure Handbook

Dear Mr. President,

I understand that, with all due respect sir, politicians don't talk about the most important things, really. As I've said to you before, I understand the changes that will help us the most must begin within our small communities through important dialogues that inspire us to reflect on our own lives and then take direct actions within our own households.

I am still consistently surprised, however, at how little those in my own community are willing to dive into these conversations for any length of time in order to be inspired to look at their own lives more closely. I can only imagine we believe we don't have time or that the language is not powerful or meaningful enough or that people don't really believe we must change our habits faster. Maybe we think we have more time than we do. I'm not sure the reasons but I find it rather unnerving.

Before we lived together, Matthew spent some time in the Peace Corps. in Africa. When he returned and we began living together, I noticed how careful he was to recycle things. I was pretty good about it but not like him and sometimes I would get so frustrated always trying to decipher which container went where and often noticing my own irritation with amount of garbage just the two of us would make on a daily basis.

I have always been concerned and wondered where it all went but I didn't spend too much time actually thinking about it because I felt I had no real control and the truth was I didn't have to think about it, because each week, even if I was bothered by how much trash I made, it still magically disappeared and I could start the process over with our large empty trash bins...week after week being hauled off to where?

Sometimes, when I was lazy/annoyed and threw something in the garbage that could be recycled, I noticed he'd go into the garbage, clean it and put it where it belonged. I would get impatient with his vigilance and I also felt guilty I wasn't as conscientious.

I asked myself why I wasn't more consistent with my recycling. I figured out that I was confused about what was actually happening with the recycling? I was rather confused about the garbage, in general. Where was it all going? I often felt at a loss and would just stop separating out the recycling from the landfill items. Either way, I felt overwhelmed with the sheer quantity of garbage we would make from day to day.

As I became irritated one day with the recycling container, I asked Mati about his experience in Africa. What did they do with their garbage? He explained to me why he'd become more aware of his own consumption and what, specifically, he decided to consume. It was because in his African community, there were no public services to haul away the garbage. If a soda was consumed, the can went on the ground. The communities were essentially the landfills.

If each person took just a few minutes to really reflect on this, we might find ourselves with very different idea of what it means to "go green". If each of us reflected on this idea seriously, we might recognize that recycling is not answer. The answer lies in a stronger, more inspired, much more powerful action. - If we could just take the time.

Imagine that in your neighborhood, the garbage that each person makes in each household stays in your neighborhood. Nobody comes regularly to take away your trash.... If your family has a package of chicken, 3 cans of corn and mashed potatoes for dinner tonight, what will you do with that package from the chicken? The cans? The potato scraps. If you each drink a can of soda? The cans? Paper towels? Napkins? Boxes? Multiply that by the number of people in your neighborhood. What will you all do with your mess? Bury it in your back yard? If you were responsible for your own garbage every single day, what would you change? What would you do differently? You can see that you would be faced with a very different reality and you might consider acting and consuming in a very different way.

I listened closely to the Italian's story and tried to imagine what it was like there.
I discovered that what I really wanted was not have to recycle at all. I wanted to not make the trash in the first place.

I know our hearts are in the right place. We do want our kids to inherit a lush planet. We think we're doing our part. I mean I watch people and we're all are very good about recycling. I see it all around me. Kitchens are equipped with 3 different trash cans. We put the appropriate bins out on the street on the appropriate days where the appropriate truck comes and hauls an unfathomable amount of empty containers away to a place where its divided up...blah blah blah...We've done our part? We continue to consume a limitless quantity of resources happily knowing that at least we recycle?

No. This is not enough. The idea is to not make the garbage at all. Or as little as possible. The idea is to not have to recycle because we're inspired to take more drastic measures. We commit to consuming less. Much less. So much less that we don't need 3 garbage cans in our kitchens. So much less that we don't have to recycle much because we've committed to buying products that aren't packaged in containers.

Individual juice boxes, cracker boxes, soda cans, shampoo bottles, cosmetic containers, individuals yogurt containers, glass bottles of condiments, paper plates, plastic forks, paper towels, napkins, cups, laundry detergent bottles, packaging packaging packaging cute little boxes inside boxes wrapped in bubble wrap, diapers, q-tips, pizza boxes, frozen food containers, meat packaging, newspapers, magazines, gift wrapping, cereal boxes...etc.. the list goes on and on.

The amount of garbage an individual makes in a day is truly mind boggling and much of that is recyclable. We feel okay about consuming because the packages of products we use can be put into the recycle bin?

More drastic measures. More inspired action. Real progress needs real change.

I, propose this, to you and your family, Mr. President, as well as those in my small community. Consider the trash you and your family make this week. What would you do with that garbage if the garbage men never came to get it and you were responsible for it? Next, try, for one week, to not buy anything in packages. Try for one week, to make as little trash and recycling as you can and tell us how it went. Tell us how you felt. Speak to us. Can you hear us?

Respectfully,
Ruth and Matthew