Every story has a beginning, and for this first post I will share my thoughts on what "going green" means to me today. I anticipate that as I evolve, I will become more firmly entrenched in making changes for my family, my home, and of course, my planet.
Even as a young girl, we had green ways--buy smart, buy used if possible, and it's not necessary to buy fancy, convenient products to do the same things that simple home-made cleaners can do. Growing up we gardened and had fresh produce. My dad hunted game and fished, so we ate from the land. So many of the things we did growing up was out of financial necessity, not for the sake of being green, but isn't wonderful when the two collide? For example, we didn't spray our lawn with pesticides and spread weed killer on the property, we let nature take its course. The garden was about an acre and it sustained our family with fresh produce including corn, tomatoes, and even rhubarb in the springtime.
We reused bread bags for packaging and didn't buy ziploc bags. My parents still use clothespins to this day to seal leftover packages of chips, etc. Simple solutions for simple needs. Instead of buying new, we bought used goods if possible. What better way to reduce, reuse, and recycle?
My parents read Mother Earth News (a wonderful magazine still in print) and the Backwoods Home. These featured sustainable living for the average person, whether living on a farm or in town. The tips in these articles still apply today. If anything, with the present economy, anyone looking to live frugally on a set income should check these out.
Over the course of the past 20 years, I got married, raised a family with my husband, Charlie, and somehow fell away from my roots of sustainable living. We changed from scratch-only cooking to box or take out for ease of use and time saving. I became enmeshed in a 'buy it now, don't worry about packaging, and charge it all on plastic' lifestyle.
Fast-forward to 2006, and my then 17-year-old daughter, Megan, began to become interested in global warming. As her interest grew, she began reading me daily updates of news reports on global warming and has been slowly working her charms to convert our household to green ever since. In her latest adventure, she attended the Change It! program sponsored by greenpeace.org in Seattle, Washington this summer. Now Megan is able to go back to her college campus this fall and hopefully institute some changes for the greater good, like recycling on campus and educating her fellow classmates on how to make changes happen for the environment. I am so unbelievably proud of her for channeling her interests in global warming to actually becoming involved in making a difference! Wow!
So that brings us to the end of summer 2008, where I am today. I am actively researching how to save money by living more frugally and having a smaller footprint on the environment at the same time. I hope to make some changes in our household that will save us money, but more importantly help the environment. I encourage you to follow along as I post tips, recipes, and plans for our green future.
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