AN ADDITIONAL ‘R’

My ideas have often been challenged and my actions inspired by the words and deeds of my fellow Bloggers. Kati who gardens in Alaska, yes that is correct, Alaska. No daylight in mid-winter and no darkness in mid-summer and the temperatures are just as extreme. Barefoot, who has a turn of phrase that I would dearly love to possess. Regarding the energy crisis she wrote “Now, I am not going to sit and tell you all that we are in for an apocalypse. I am not going to say that someday we will just wake up to find that the lights won't go on no matter how many times we flip the switch or that the gas stations will all just close down overnight. There are other folks who say that better than I". [I have my doubts there barefoot.]

Becoming Me, a talented author who has struggled against and is triumphing over health problems, and there is Mrs.Green and Mrs.Average, both whom make my efforts seem inadequate. I could keep going on and you can see my favourite blog sites on the left, but recently I visited one blog, Russell's, and found a simple statement that stopped me in my tracks.

When I have been asked “do you practice the five R’s” I have usually (far too smugly) replied “no I practice the *five* R’s, not just reduce, recycle & reuse but also, repair and refuse”, e.g. refuse excess packaging, plastic bags etc. But Russell has added one more ‘R’, R for ‘Respect’.

Respect for the person that made the item and respect for the quality of an item. I personally cannot respect something made under sweatshop conditions or a cheaply made item. I have far more respect for a Fair Trade T shirt than one from a Third World country that I suspect was made by child labour and also far more respect for a 100 year old handmade spade that is still giving good service than I have for a Chinese manufactured stainless steel item.

In a way one only needs the one ‘R’ as it sums up all the other five and, on reflection, shows why I decided to clear 'my' lane, see my previous post. Those that discarded their 'rubbish' (they had actually purchased it) had absolutely zero respect for it or for the creation of our local environment.

Driving down the lane I thought "not even Solomon in all his splendour was dressed like one of these". Then I noticed the plastic bags!

They were in the hedges that ran along the beautiful country lane to where we live and as the lane is only just over a mile long, a turning off a major road, I thought that I should do a litter pick along its length; so donning my best red T shirt, (well, second best, my best has Buggs Bunny on the front) I started, and you can see the result in the photo, 21 lbs of rubbish!

Approx 5 miles away there are a KFC and McDonald's drive through, and the most popular type of litter was, in order from the main road, (but you are an intelligent person and you've guessed the answer already, I can see that from here) food wrappings and trays from those two, followed by drinks containers from the same places, followed by cigarette packets. So it would seem that those responsible for the majority of roadside litter in our area are fast food drive through clients that smoke!

There were other items though. One Wellington boot, a half of a wash hand basin, one shoe, and a few bottles filled with liquid, some soiled paper (no idea what the contents of the last two were, but I had a fairly good idea...) various items of clothing and the plastic bags that started the mission off. I did intend to sort the items for recycling but the stench was so disgusting that I regret to say it all went to landfill. I have told myself that it is better of there than where it was, but wouldn’t it be great if it wasn’t ‘where it was’ in the first place?

Insulation is always a good idea as is turning the heat down...

I regret you can't breathe the air, drink the water, grow your food, and I'm sorry you have cancer, but I really wanted a bigger house and a new SUV

The above is a line from a Canadian Newspaper, 'The Times Colonist' and it is the message the writer suggests we leave for our grandchildren. The article documents the environmental disaster that Canada faces. It details the collapse of the Cod Fisheries, the dying forests and toxic waste areas created by the Oil sands projects.

The author describes the wealth of today as being 'dirty money', in that it has been created by crimes against nature, which in my book means crimes against creation which equates to crimes against God. Please read the full article HERE it makes sobering reading...

It is not, of course, only Canada where this type of event occurs, the destruction of our childrens', children's future is everywhere.

"Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted."

The heading is a quote from John 6:12, and the full passage is taken from the report of the Feeding of the Five Thousand which reads “When they had all had enough to eat, He said to His disciples, "Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted." So what’s that got to do with the image on this post?

All those Kiwi fruit that you see in the image, 520 in all, have to be trashed; they can’t even be given away due to EU (European Union) regulations! They are perfectly wholesome but they are too small… yes, approx 1mm in diameter too small…

Grown in Chile, transported in refrigerated conditions half way round the world, and dumped into landfill in the UK, “The inspector's decision is consistent with RPA's commitment to protect consumers” said the man who enforced the decision, “Let nothing be wasted” He said.

Still can't believe it? ... see the BBC report here.